


Don't tease future with your kindness

by Calanthedeservedbetter



Category: The Legend of Zelda & Related Fandoms
Genre: Angst, Angst and Humor, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Idealization, Linked Universe (Legend of Zelda), Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Self-Esteem Issues, Sky&Wars are bros. Why? Because I said so., Sky/Sun (mentioned) - Freeform, Some Fluff, Team as Family, Warriors-centric, at least for now, but that's okay, but what is angst without fluff?, it changes rather quickly iyam, it works in both ways, it's not, legend is grumpy 25/7, let this kid speak what he thinks, sky-centric, somehow it is, tags make it sounds dark, team as potential threat, wind swears a lot
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-20
Updated: 2020-10-04
Packaged: 2021-03-07 01:07:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 30,668
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26008492
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Calanthedeservedbetter/pseuds/Calanthedeservedbetter
Summary: And yet Sky felt like something was wrong. Like something was in the air. Some kind of tension. Unspoken and quiet. Subliminal yet conscious. The atmosphere was so thick that Sky felt like he was going to throw up. What’s odd, the others seemed to be completely ignoring it.Earlier he asked Warriors if everything was okay. He just blinked at him and nodded with that cheeky smile of his. He patted him on the shoulder and told him to go do something more useful than worrying about everything.And maybe Warriors was right.Maybe he should do something more useful.Maybe everything was alright.Maybe he always felt like vomiting his guts.Maybe.---------Or: the gang visits a strange town that affects them in one of the worst ways.[During editing]
Relationships: Four & Hyrule & Legend & Sky & Time & Twilight & Warriors & Wild & Wind (Linked Universe), Other Relationship Tags to Be Added, Sky & Warriors (Linked Universe)
Comments: 31
Kudos: 93





	1. Did you cry so much that you could barely see?

It’s not like the day was bad or something. Quite the opposite actually. They encountered only one group of moblins and got out mostly unscathed. The only victim was Hyrule, who at some point had been thrown out into the air and had fallen hard on the ground. He didn't suffer from major injuries. He also didn’t complain too much about pain in back so--

Well, it isn’t like anyone of them has EVER complained about pain or wounds from fights, but it couldn’t be something serious since he was able to walk normally for the rest of the way.

They covered quite a distance. They were getting closer to the nearby town and they should reach it by tomorrow’s evening. And this-- this was great, really. They could cope with the lack of food and water - they were in the forest after all. However, their potion supply has shrunk almost entirely. It was something they simply couldn’t ignore.

Plus they found a good place to set up a camp. Glade surrounded by trees, so the strong wind didn’t reach them, but a light breeze that brought relief after a whole day of walking in sun.

And on top of that - a while ago Twilight came back from hunting with a deer slung over his shoulder - that meant Wild wouldn’t have to worry about making something tasty out of nothing. Not that Sky was taking anything away from him, his least exquisite dishes were far more delicious than what he usually ate.

And yet Sky felt like something was wrong. Like something was in the air. Some kind of tension. Unspoken and quiet. Subliminal yet conscious. The atmosphere was so thick that Sky felt like he was going to throw up. What’s odd, the others seemed to be completely ignoring it.

Earlier he asked Warriors if everything was okay. He just blinked at him and nodded with that cheeky smile of his. He patted him on the shoulder and told him to go do something more useful than worrying about everything.

And maybe Warriors was right.

Maybe he should do something more useful.

Maybe everything was alright.

Maybe he always felt like vomiting his guts.

Maybe.

He looked around the camp. As soon as they arrived, Wild started a fire and was now sitting next to it. He just finished unpacking the cooking items.

On the other side of the camp Hyrule and Wind were talking about something. He couldn't exactly hear what it was about but judging from the echo of their loud laughter, it had to be something trivial.

Hmm, his sense of hearing seemed a bit weaker lately.

He hoped it wasn’t something serious. He didn’t want to be even less mobile than he already was. With his low stamina running itself was a torture. Permanent hearing damage… would make it difficult for him to fight on a different level. Bright rays of the sun fell across his face through the thick trunks of trees. He closed his eyes for a moment, enjoying the warmth. Everything was fine. Everything was completely fine. So why did he feel like something was wrong? His body jerked violently from prolonged muscle tension. He always became a little paranoid without his armor on.

Maybe he was just nitpicking? From a logical point of view nothing bad happened today. Maybe he just got used to unpleasant surprises and distressing conflicts that every moment without them seemed strange and inappropriate? It would explain a lot. Unless… there was one more possibility. He ran a hand through his hair and pushed a fringe back. He put his hand to the forehead. It was warm but normally warm. Sky’s hands were usually cold, so that the head was hot compared to them wasn’t a big sensation.

He sighed softly and rolled over the side.

Well, at least he didn’t have a fever. The last thing he wanted was to slow down the rest and be unable to fight. The mere thought of relying on others in everything made him so disgusted that he gritted his teeth. It’s not like he didn’t trust them. Far from that actually. He just couldn’t bear to see himself as helpless, powerless, worthless--

He got up. It leads to nowhere. Thinking that way wasn’t going to help him.

Warriors was right.

He torments himself over something that’s only in his head.

He should find something to do before he drowned in his self-pity. He took a deep breath and glanced back at the camp. If life has taught him something it was definitely that only work or talk could drown out negative thoughts.

Time, Four and Twilight were nowhere to be found. Hyrule and Wind were doing the exact same thing-- He could talk to them. He could. But he didn’t want to. At the moment, all he would do was brooding. It layed in no one's favor.

Warriors was polishing his armor. Nothing interesting. Plus he seemed to have fallen into that pensive mood of his that he would sometimes get into when he sat alone for too long. It was better to not approach him then. He was getting terribly glum and distracted. As if his thoughts were somewhere else.

Legend was sitting cross-legged and was looking through his trinkets. And… Damn he wasn’t  _ that _ desperate to listen to his neverending complaints. Normally he didn't mind but today... he wasn’t sure if he would be able to stop himself from snapping. He needed some occupation, simple and uncomplicated, just to keep his hands busy--

And then he saw his ray of hope. Wild. Sweet, lovely Wild was still struggling with dinner. Perfectly.

He smiled slightly if a little forced. Wild didn’t notice anything, and if so, he didn’t show it.

“I know I’m not much help when it comes to cooking but I think I could at least cut something,” He gave him the best smile he could afford and leaned towards Wild. “I’m sure you can make some use of me.”

The inside of his cheek hurt slightly as he spoke. Another reason to engage in anything other than brooding. The last thing he'd like to do was getting his tongue cut.

Wild smiled sheepishly but he didn’t meet his eyes. Sky curled his lips. He probably crossed the line. He stepped back and rested his head on one hand.

“Uh… Cooking isn’t as complicated as you think it is. Everyone can learn it. All you have to do is to keep the right proportions and check from time to time if any spice is missing--” he stopped and his eyes widened. He scowled at him. “Cooking is  _ my _ thing.” he said through clenched teeth and Sky gave him a concerned look. Of course he knew how possessive Wild could be but he was counting that his companionate side would take over.

And he didn't miscalculate. After a while, Wild realized what he had just said and he looked like he couldn’t believe himself. His lips twitched silently.

“Oh Sky... I don’t know, I don’t know where it came from. I’m so sorry-- I- I’m just used to preparing food without anyone's help and…” He started to tangle the fingers of his right hand into the hair at the nape of his neck and play with them. Several streaks fell out of the low ponytail. Sky wondered if he was aware of it. He looked at his face. Slightly tanned and slightly ruddy. Eyes in the color of a cloudless sky on a warm day. Perfectly balanced features, not too sharp, not too soft. And… pink scars. Scars that cover half of his face. He resisted the urge to grimace and look away. Instead, he stubbornly stared on. Sky wished the younger hero would stop seeing them as a sign of weakness and failure but he knew he couldn't help much. Wild had to realize it himself.

Scars were a sign that you fought and didn't give up. That you stood on your feet instead of lying low defeated. He wished Wild would understand that. So when he’d look at himself on the surface of the water, he wouldn’t see a broken, worthless person, but someone who fulfilled his duty and survived. That he felt proud of them.

How much would he give to--

“Sky…?”

He blinked. He spaced out again. He looked at Wild questioningly.

"....You can peel and cut the carrots," He said slowly.

Sky didn’t know if he didn’t want to be rude or if he looked so desperate. Nevertheless he got what he wanted. A win-win situation. Was the way he achieved it really that important?

He took a short knife and began to peel with a lazy smile on his lips.

In some way, he understood Wild better now. Cooking could be quite a relaxing activity. If he had been in his place (which had no bearing on reality. Sky couldn't cook and he doubted anything could fix this dysfunction), he wouldn't want anyone to take this job from him either. Or worse, took his place.

Initially, he was doing average. It was hard to admit but Sky’s never done such work before. For as long as he could remember, he had lived in the academy, and in the academy it was Henya who cooked, not journeymen. When he was on an expedition to find Zelda, he didn't have to worry about it - he could go back to Skyloft at any moment. And even if he was far from home, he usually had some food bought at the marketplace with him. Well... almost always.

Once he went to the surface with no provisions and walked for two days with nothing in his mouth. He was sure he’d passed out once or twice. Fi, instead of sock it to him what a moron he was, simply told him that he was acting  _ injudiciously _ and that he should do  _ wiser _ next time. Of course he’d never made the same mistake again. Otherwise, he would have gotten more passive-aggressive comments. And how much he loved Fi, he hated it when she started drowning him in her observations and advice. Of course they were helpful, but there were too many of them.

_ 'to defeat this enemy you have to cut from left to right' _

_ 'now you have to jump' _

_ 'I think it would be proper to get better equipment' _

Sky might not have been the fastest and brightest, but he was definitely not an idiot. ...although people often took him for one--

“Ouch!” He hissed through clenched teeth.

“What is it?” Wild turned towards him, ladle in his hand. “Sky?”

He forced himself to open his narrowed eyes. Blood.

He pressed a finger to the wound. He hissed.

Yes, Sky was definitely not a bright one.

Someone grabbed his hand and he was about to break free when he noticed golden wisps falling on his shoulder.

Wild pressed a finger to the point where the liquid was coming out. He pressed it without much feeling.

Sky groaned in pain and yanked his arm away.

Apparently Wild wasn't the brightest either.

“That's quite a lot of blood…” Sky looked at him reproachfully.  _ You don’t say-- _ “but the wound isn’t serious. It's okay if you don't want to keep helping me with the stew.”

His eyes widened. He wanted to get rid of him. Just like that. He wanted to make dinner himself. Without  _ Sky's _ help. He didn’t want  _ him _ here. He wanted to  _ abandon _ him.  _ Oh no no no. _ If he thinks he'd get rid of him like that, he was terribly mistaken!

“I'll take care of it and be right back. Like you said, it's nothing serious.”

Dinner was delicious. As always, anyway.

Since he was helping Wild, he was the first to get the bowl of stew. The smell was stunning, a mix of cabbage, fresh meat, dried tomatoes... and spices. He personally couldn't tell them apart, and even if he did, he was sure he didn't know their names. But without doubt it was something more than salt and pepper. He felt a build-up of saliva in his mouth. The bowl was warm in his hands. Still too warm. He swallowed hard. He couldn't eat boiling water no matter how tempting it seemed right now.

“It smells delicious,” he said, taking a deep breath through his nose.

“Mmm and it tastes even better!” Hyrule spoke and ate so fast that Sky wondered if he would choke.

He'll probably have a burned tongue by tomorrow. He stirred the stew with a wooden spoon. And hopefully only that.

He frowned. Sky had seen burns before.

When he and the other Skylofians came to the surface, he warned them about the volcano but not everyone listened. Usually the burns were deep. The skin covered with red blisters the size of a hen's egg yolk looked terrible but the real horror were blisters lasting for several days, not reducing their surface area, but on the contrary enlarging and filling with yellow fluid. Fortunately, the burns had never been extensive and according to what he knew, no one had ever lost their life because of it.  _ Thank Goddess. _

However, he couldn't blame the careless inhabitants. If it wasn't for Fi, he would probably have done equal stupid things himself, and who knows, he might have died…

Now, as he looked at Hyrule, he couldn't help but think that his esophagus would be filled by bubbles with a yellow interior. His hands twitched as if he had just burned himself. He swallowed cautiously.

Once... when he was younger he got burned. Admittedly, to a small extent, completely incomparable to those poor Skyloftians, but still. Once he and a few other boys from the academy broke into the kitchen. They didn't want to steal anything valuable - they were children, and every child loves sweets. That was their goal. Sneak into the kitchen, grab some sweets and escape to the dormitory. A simple plan. It’s too bad that Sky burned his hand with a still cooling frying pan while searching the countertops. Now, Sky would have just hissed quietly but back then he was a child. Within a minute the kitchen was full of adults, alarmed by his screams. Of course, after the burns were dealt with he got so many sermons... especially from Zelda…

He smiled dreamily. Thanks to this incident, Zelda drew more attention to him. She was following him like a shadow for next month, acting like an intrusive mother. It had irritated him then but now he could see that she was just worried.

“Are in love with your reflection or what?” Warriors leaned over him. For a moment Sky could feel warm air on his cheek. He nudged his side with an elbow.

He blinked.

“What?” Had he zone out again?

Warriors sat next to him with a puzzled look on his face.

“You were looking at the bowl as if charmed,” he pointed a wooden spoon at the bowl and smiled. But not in this cheeky way, but the latter,  _ suggestive _ . “Come on Sky, are you thinking of some pretty maiden hmmm?”

He felt like his cheeks were burning. “No?”

Warriors laughed loudly. “Is that supposed to be a question?”

Sky wanted to deny it, but someone overtook him.

“You are a hopeless liar, Sky,” Hyrule hummed, sitting by the fire. The flames illuminated his round face and turned his hair to honey-colored.

“Oh come on! Do you really want to hear more stories about his Zelda? Because I sure as hell don't!”

“ _ Oh come on _ Legend, maybe it wasn’t Zelda--”

“It was,” Sky said and looked to the side. “And she is--”

“Gorgeous, wonderful, amusing! Yes, we all know it! Thank you Sky, this knowledge was essential to my life!”

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Twilight watching him intently, brows knotted. He always did that when Legend teased him. But he didn't interfere. Sky was grateful to him for that.

Warriors muttered something under his breath and adjusted the blue scarf.

“Tasty as always Wild! Truly lovely!” He grinned and handed him the bowl.

“Wow, thanks Cap. It’s just a pity that you don’t wash it yourself,” The long-haired hero said sarcastically but took the bowl.

Warriors laughed.

“Y'know I do way better in management positions, I'm a captain for a reason--"

“So you want to say,” Legend interrupted him. “That our wonderful Captain can’t wash the bowl after himself? That’s sad.”

“I’d rather say pitiful,” someone said smoothly.

Warriors’ face turned crimson, his hands shook. He stood up.

“Hey! I didn’t say that!”

“Oh but you didn’t have to,” Legend smiled slyly and narrowed his eyes in a way that could only be described as predatory. “Cap - i - tain”

Sky looked at Warriors. There was no way he’s--

“Of course I can wash the bowls!” he roared. “Wild! Give me that!” Without waiting, he whipped wooden objects from the teenager and to Sky's surprise, walked over to him. He looked at him questioningly. "What are you looking at? Pass me the--”

“You haven't finished eating yet?” Wild gave him a surprised look over the captain's shoulder and after a thoughtful moment said. “I may have added a little too much salt,” He glanced to the side, his eyes distant. “It’s fine if you didn't like it--”

“You didn't like it?” Now Hyrule was looking at him strangely.  _ Oh Hylia... _

“Are you trying to say that you  _ despise _ Wild's food?!”

“What? Who doesn't like Wild's kitchen?”

There were more and more looks. His fingers tightened on the wooden bowl.

“I just lost track of time. That's all, I'm sure it tastes great!” he smiled apologetically.

Legend snorted and kicked a twig with the tip of his boot so that it hit the slowly dying fire.

“Good answer. I would’ve beaten you to a sour apple if you insulted Wild's kitchen.”

“Same here!”

About half an hour had passed since Hyrule awakened him for the changing of the watch.

The air was cold and humid. His limbs were starting to get numb from sitting too long in an uncomfortable position on a hard branch. Well, he couldn't climb on trees as well as Wild or Hyrule so he chose one of the lower branches to sit on. If he climbed higher, maybe it would be more comfortable for him. He straightened as far as his present position allowed him. Goddess his back was killing him…

Sitting in the tree might not be the most comfortable but it was definitely one of the better vantage points. He adjusted his bracers. Without moving, he could see the camp and the nearby grounds, while the enemy wouldn’t notice him among the branches of the trees.

Over time, his eyes began to adjust to the constant darkness. He always had good eyesight. Much better than the others. A strand of hair crossed his face. He slowly pushed it away. Sudden movements and even the slightest noise could attract unwanted attention. He couldn’t let it happen. An owl roared in the distance.

Just because he hardly slept at all before his watch didn't mean that the others should either. He sighed softly. He was tired. He got up early today, something about 3 or 4 AM? He wasn't sure about it… He frowned as he adjusted the straps of the leather gauntlets. Every time he put his head down on the ground, he began to think about the various nonsense that kept him awake.

It wasn't the first time this had happened, and Sky was pretty sure it wouldn't be the last. Either way, he knew one thing for sure.  _ It wasn't permanent. _ It will pass. It’ll take a few nights, probably two or three, but it  _ will _ pass. Sooner or later. He smiled slightly. He still hoped it would happen sooner.

He scolded himself mentally. He zoned out again. He had more important things to do now.

Watching the camp.

Yes.

He adjusted his left gauntlet. He had squeezed it too tight and now was slowly losing feeling in his fingers.

He winced slightly.

How could he tighten it so hard? He needed to pay more attention to what he was doing.

He looked up at the sky.

It was clouded. Only here and there were visible flashing stars. The moon was nowhere to be seen.

_ But that's good, _ he thought as he warmed the fingers of his left hand,  _ it's harder to see me in the dark. _

He looked at the camp again. He frowned. He was supposed to watch over the safety of his comrades, not stare at the sky. Why was he so distracted?

To say the truth, he wasn’t fit for today's patrol. He was too tired. Everything he heard felt distant and now his head was starting throbbing.

It would be safer if someone else took over his watch and he went to bed.

He smiled bitterly. The problem was Sky knew that no matter how long he tried, he wouldn't fall asleep anytime soon. The night was always the worst. It was as if thoughts from the corner of his mind slipped out of the closed door in the form of shadows. His smile deepened at this ridiculous thought.

If he’s lucky enough, around 3 AM when the sun rises, he will fall asleep.

Once again he looked down at the sleeping companions. Some of them slept in an orderly manner, some tossed everything aside, and some left their sleeping pads. For example, Legend’s head was practically lying in the ashes of the fire while Hyrule tried to hug Wild... or at least his leg. He felt warm inside, then hot of abstained laughter as he saw Wild kicking Hyrule in the head. Others needed rest too, and he preferred to do anything but pretending he was asleep.

His gaze wandered involuntarily to the group leader.

Time.

He slept like most, with a sword close to his hand. He wasn't moving at all and if Sky hadn't been traveling with him for the last few months, he would’ve been sure he was awake and just pretending.

Sky frowned.

Time was acting weird today.

And by that he meant weirder than usual.

He kept disappearing, and when he was present, it seemed as if he was still not here. Sometimes he stared at Sky when he wasn't looking. Of course Sky noticed this. He was too sensitive to such things, especially when someone was constantly watching him. Nevertheless, he did nothing about it.

Sky got used to the constant teasing about Fi. He got used to being mocked about his faith. He didn't even argue when Time was snappy about the Master Sword. Staring wasn't so bad. Or at least it was nothing he couldn't handle.

Now... when he thought about it. Time had never offended him to his face. He never told him he was stupid, gullible, naive or blinded. He always insulted him around.

He frowned. It's not like it made a difference. Sky realized a while ago that he wasn’t one of the people Time liked. Heck, he wasn't sure if anyone but Four and Twilight were among them. The leader's stone face was hard to read.

Time was too reserved. And... It probably had its justification, but... Sky just couldn't accept it. They were a team, and Sky sometimes caught himself glancing nervously over his shoulder during a fight to see if Time was really watching his back.

If he thought about it, Time wasn’t the only one reserved. All of them were. And yet Sky felt that the greatest gulf laid between them.

He sighed and leaned against a tree trunk. If he’d keep thinking so much, his head would surely explode. His body demanded more and more sleep. The limbs felt heavier and the head lighter. He hit his knee slightly. He couldn’t afford to close his eyes while on duty. Even for a short while. He was supposed to watch his comrades and that's what he was going to do. Then he heard a scream. He didn't feel like sleeping anymore. Instantly every muscle in his body tensed, he reached unconsciously for the sword on his back.

He quickly withdrew his hand when he realized that the sound had come from the camp and it didn't belong to any monster. It was Twilight.

Sky jumped off the tree, bouncing off the branch with both hands. He landed quietly and carefully, though somewhat unstably; he had to prop himself up with hands. Now they were dirty with loose earth. But it didn't matter. What was important was that Twilight needed help.  _ Now. _

There was a scream again, this time more like an animal roar.

The sound made him come to his senses. Shiver ran down his spine. He sprang to Twilight, passing Hyrule who was now rubbing his eyes. He asked him what was going on. But he didn’t answer. He didn't pay much attention to him then. His priority was to silence the screaming hero. With each passing moment, the risk of waking others increased. Just like attracting dangerous creatures to the camp.

The last thing he wanted was to fight blindly in the middle of the night.

He was beside him. Twilight flung himself in different directions. He was breathing heavily, a drop of sweat ran down his neck. Hmm, a nightmare. He knelt on one knee and pushed Twilight's sword toward the fireplace. He took a deep breath to calm himself and gently touched his shoulder. He shook him slightly, while saying softly his name. It was enough. In the next second his eyes were wide open and his hand wandered beside him looking for the sword while the other tightened around Sky's wrist. He holded down the frown forming on his face. He smiled slightly instead.

Maybe Sky was better in the one-on-one fight, but it was Twilight who was the strongest.  _ And it fucking shows. _

“Hey, hey easy now, everything is fine, it was just a nightmare, Twi" he bit the inside of his cheek, unluckily the one which he'd bit before “it's not happening, it's just a bad dream, it's not real”

His breathing gradually slowed as Sky continued.

“It's all right now, you're at the campsite in…” They didn't know where they were, so he improvised “Time’s Hyrule and nothing can hurt you there.”

The blue eyes didn't seem so wild anymore. However, they showed uncertainty and... distrust.

“Sky…?” His voice was hoarse and low. Sky barely understood what he was saying.

“Mhmm.”

It took a moment for him to realize it was dark and Twilight could hardly see anything.

“Oh yeah, it's me.”

“Uhh,” He groaned and looked around, avoiding Sky's form. “What time is it now?”

Sky didn't know why it mattered but he didn't say it out loud. He wondered. It was still dark and it didn't seem like anything was going to change soon.

“Probably around two in the morning. I think so…” That would make sense. “Twilight... could you...” Sky pointed to his still-held wrist.

Twilight released him as if he'd been burnt. He backed away.

“Sorry-- I- I didn't notice when I...!”

“It's fine, okay?” he said, massaging his wrist. “But, please, be quiet.”

They sat in silence for a while. Sky kept his hand close while Twilight’s hand ran through his hair. They were wet with sweat and in terrible disarray. But it wasn't his appearance he was concerned about now. And Sky saw it. He gave him a questioning look. If he wanted to say something, now was the moment. Sky had to keep watching the camp.

“...Everything's okay?” If not, Sky would wake up someone else to take care of it. The longer he stayed here, the more he would endanger the camp. He frowned. Hyrule... he was awake. It's even better. "I can go get someone... Wild or--”

“No! I- I mean no, don't do this. He needs sleep too…” He looked to the side and smiled apologetically. He looked away from Sky again, why-- “I just wanted to ask if it was bad.”

He blinked.

“If  _ what _ was bad?” Was it…

“Uh…” Yeah, he saw it now, Twilight was red in the face. “Me.”

His wrist screamed at him that yes, he was but --

“No, it wasn’t so bad.”

It’s true. It could be worse. And Sky couldn’t in all conscience say it to him in the face when he looked like a beaten dog.

His features softened. He smiled slightly though he still looked confused.

“You're too nice for your own good, Sky. Anyone ever told ya that?"

“Not really,” he smiled back and stood up, brushing his knees. “But you should go to sleep, Twilight,” he grew serious. “Tomorrow is a tough day. Good night.” And then he left.

He made his way through the camp with medium-sized steps. And he couldn't stand it. His fingers curled into fists. He stopped halfway to the tree he had jumped from. Ever since he came down, he had experienced this feeling. Like someone or something was burning a hole in his back.

Watching his every step. How crooked, how straight, how quickly he made it. Critically and ruthlessly. By throwing away Sky's entire character, leaving nothing but core, then drilling right through it. Oh how Sky hated it. He had met too often with that kind of gaze to not recognize it now.

He looked over his shoulder. There wasn’t anything or anyone. Only Legend sleeping in a comical position and on his left, as usual, Four curled in a ball.

His eyes narrowed. Sure Sky wasn’t infallible. He'd made mistakes at times, but he was sure of that like nothing else. You can’t mistake the feeling of being watched with anything else.

He bit his lower lip as he pulled the Master Sword from behind. The blade felt well in his hand. Perfectly balanced and sharp as ever.  _ Just a pity it was without Fi's voice, _ he thought bitterly. She would help him, tell him what to do.

How much he didn't want to leave the camp, he also knew that he had to do it. He moved forward.

And he found nothing. He searched the area twice. Whatever it was, it must have escaped without leaving any traces behind. As a rule, he should search the area three times (third time lucky or something), but first of all, he didn't see much sense in it, if there was something, he would find it the second time; and secondly, he felt like the adrenaline was letting go and he was becoming numb again. He might even risk saying that he was becoming sleepy.

But his sleepiness passed quickly when while climbing on a tree someone extended a hand to him. His heart stopped for a moment. He slowly looked up. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw it was only Twilight. He was scared like never before. He grabbed the offered hand and then was pulled up.

He immediately wanted to ask what he was doing here when the other hero overtook him.

“Where have you been?” Sky grimaced at the tone of his voice, only when he looked at his face he saw he wasn’t angry but concerned.

He weighed his options. Tell him the truth or not? He didn’t find any threat, so mentioning it wasn’t particularly important…

But what if it would come back? He sincerely doubted it, but at the same time, some paranoid part of him told him that he couldn't be sure and there was a possibility it was only a scout who would bring the entire horde here in a moment.

Something snapped in front of his eyes. “Sky?”

Twilight was staring at him with those big, worried eyes.

“You spaced out again” he tried to smile, but there was visible discomfort in it.

“Sometimes I wonder why we call you ‘Sky’ instead of ‘Space’,” he feigned thoughtfulness, and Sky laughed softly. “But now seriously, what were you doing in the woods? I saw you leaving the camp.”

Sky crossed his arms over his chest.

_ I guess there is no need to hide it anymore… _

“I thought someone had sneaked into the camp so I went to check it,” he shrugged.

He could see Twilight's eyebrows slowly meeting his eyes, creating a rather bleak sight.

The wind blew but neither of them shivered.

“But I didn’t find anything.”

Twilight still looked worried. He was probably going to suggest making a round.

“...If you say so” he sat down.

Sky blinked rapidly in disbelief. In the end, he said nothing and sat down too. And then Twilight turned so they were seated facing opposite sides of the branch. Sky leaned out and gave him a questioning look. The man just smiled. “This way we can see a larger area,” He explained.

Looking at him, Sky had no heart to protest, much less to tell him to go back to sleep. From now on they sat in silence.

Sky was alert, really. The additional presence in form of Twilight helped him focus and be ready. Or at least it was like that at the beginning. It was no secret that Sky was a sleepyhead and could fall asleep almost anywhere and anytime. No wonder then that as he got used to Twilight's presence, he began to slowly drift away. At first he rested his side against his shoulder, then his head, until he rested his whole body against him. He couldn’t keep his eyes open but he fought stubbornly to stay awake.

Twilight himself wasn’t very helpful. Instead of slapping his shoulder as he shamelessly rested his head on it, didn’t do anything. In a way, it surprised Sky (or at least the few brain cells that didn't find Twilight's a comfortable pillow), anyone would have snapped his nose or shook him long ago. But... If Twilight shook him, he would probably fall off the tree. Perhaps he knew this and therefore did nothing. Yes, it made sense.

Which didn’t change the fact that it was his watch, not Twilight’s. He lazily began to raise his head as his ears reached a soft and regretful “Sorry,” He froze. Still leaning on his shoulder as much as he could, he turned his head. He couldn't see Twilight's face clearly, but he was sure of one thing. His eyes were shining.

“For-- for what?” he asked clumsily, although he probably knew what he was talking about. He conjectured. Of course, he conjec–

“You know what I'm talking about,” he said quietly, as if flustered. Sky's teeth gritted tighter.

He sat up straight and turned his back to him, pressing his knee against his chest. He rested his head on it confused. He didn't like this kind of conversation, he really didn't, and now he was there again. He was never particularly good at comforting or giving advice. Zelda was... It was  _ always _ Zelda. She would know what to do, what to say, how to encourage someone, and how to scold and motivate. Sky... Words were never his strength. Knights weren’t taught to speak but to kill, protect and be loyal. He would’ve liked to leave it for Hyrule, Wind or Warriors but he knew he couldn't do it. Not when he saw that Twilight was evidently suffering.

Indeed, Twilight. The same Twilight who helped everyone, the one who handled the hardest jobs, supported each one of them, no matter how unbearable they might act. That Twilight who always smiled awkwardly when he didn't know what to say. The same who--

...Sky had seen him sometimes when he couldn't cope. He saw him looking dimly at the sky with glassy eyes. He saw how his lips were trembling when he wanted to say something and yet preferred to hold them tightly and remain silent. He saw how–

“It's not your fault,” he muttered somberly, but there was no reaction to it. “And you should never apologize for having nightmares. It's completely natural and whoever told you otherwise is wrong. Anyway, we're a team, we should take care of each other, right?”

That was quite ironic of him. The team shouldn't have any secrets. And this one had too many of them.

Twilight muttered something under his breath, but Sky didn't hear what it was. He chose to ignore it.

“I know we aren’t that close, but if you want to talk about it, you always have support in me,” He smiled bitterly but somehow authentically. He wasn't Zelda and he wasn't going to pretend otherwise. “I'm here for you and everyone else but I'm not going to force anything on anyone, so I will ask only once.” He turned towards him and now he could clearly see the wet marks on the other hero's cheeks. “Do you want to talk about it, Twilight?”

His lips twitched. He looked at Sky with emotionless eyes. He didn’t cry. He didn't say anything either. Sky waved his hand in front of his face.

“Twi--?”

A hand grasped his wrist. And again for the same. Shit, he wasn't lucky today.

“Have... Have you ever heard about how to check if you are dreaming or awake?”

An evasive question, Sky noted. He asked an evasive question. He'll probably carve around the subject before he gets to the bottom of it. Well, at least he’ll offload. Better that than to keep it inside. Anyway, Sky had time. The sun hasn't come up yet. His watch was still on.

“Uh… I guess so? The point is you have to pinch your arm, right?”

He nodded and... started squeezing Sky's fingers one by one? He resisted the urge to pull his arm away. He licked the inner wall of his teeth. If he was going to get anywhere with it, he had to show that he was trustworthy.

“Yes. Basically the idea is to get a reaction that only occurs in one of these states,” Sky didn't really know what he meant by that but didn't interrupt him. “In this case, it's pain, slight, but still. And…” He swallowed nervously and turned his head to the side. “And if the pinch hurts you, it means you aren’t dreaming”

What was he striving for? He didn't know if he was so slow to put the facts together, because he was never particularly bright, or because he was so sleepy.

“You know where this sayin’ came from?”

Sky shook his head as he noticed that Twilight was actually waiting for an answer.

“I don’t know either,” he smiled sadly and added. “But one thing I’m sure, whoever came up with this idea never slept.”

A quick thought crossed his mind. He shivered. He didn’t-- He-- Oh Twi…

“Was it bad?” Now he wasn’t looking at his face either. “The pain, I mean...”

He said nothing and he didn't have to. Sky already knew the answer.

“It-- it wasn't-- The pain wasn’t the worst thing,” he swallowed nervously “The worst part was knowing, knowing this was all really happening and...! And I-- and I-I I can't do  _ anything _ about it,” He released Sky's hand and rubbed his knuckles roughly on his face. It was as if he wanted to get rid of not only the tears from his cheeks, but the skin underneath them as well.

Sky studied this image of despair. He felt so sorry for him. He didn't know what to say.

...

What would Zelda say?

Probably something uplifting, heartening.

But he wasn't her. He sat in silence as Twilight plunged into despair.

He sat in silence as Twilight's too rapid breath turned into silent sobbing and sniffling.

He sat in silence as Twilight began to tremble when he pressed his tearful face into Sky's shoulder.

He sat in silence as Twilight tried to gain control of regular breathing.

He said nothing when he noticed that the first rays of the sun appeared on the border of sky and earth.

He said nothing when Legend’s watch should have started fifteen minutes ago.

He said nothing about that Twilight was too heavy and was crushing his arm.

He was too scared. He didn't really know why but every time he opened his mouth, his throat felt dry and his teeth shook to the point that he was afraid he would bite off his tongue.

At one point he wasn't sure if it was Twilight who was shaking or him.

But after a while, Twilight calmed down. He lifted his face and turned away. His eyes were red from crying.

“Thanks for...” he started quietly and paused. “Thanks for everything.”

Sky slowly looked at him, trying to keep his face unreadable.

“I– I'll go around,” he said, his voice still uncertain. “And-- and I'll take the next watch. Yes… Whose turn was it now?” He asked but didn't even look at Sky. “It’s Legend’s right? You don't have to wake him up, he's always so moody in the morning. Maybe if he sleeps more, he'll be less fussy later? Who knows?” The corners of his mouth twitched, and Sky felt like his stomach turned upside down. It was all so out of place-- “And you need rest too, if we're lucky we'll get to town tonight. Well, unless  _ someone _ will fall asleep halfway through.” he smiled and patted Sky on the shoulder. “Well, I'll be going now, you get up too and oh sweet Hylia! Why are you in full armor?”

Sky smiled slightly and terribly forced. At least that was his impression.

Twilight was about to jump off but paused. He took a deep but soft breath. He turned and looked Sky in the face. There were still remnants of sadness in his kind eyes.

“I'm sorry that you had to see me like this and... Thanks Sky,” Sky frowned. What was he thanking him for? He didn't do a thing, he-- “and I mean it.”

And then he jumped off. But before he ran into deep woods, Sky called out his name. He wasn't sure why.

The man stopped and gave him a questioning look.

“Everything will be fine,” he said, and Twilight smiled at him so sincerely and warmly that Sky almost believed his own words.

“Of course it will. It always gets better.”

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was more of an introdiucion than the actual plot but it was necessary. I had to show the interactions between the characters.
> 
> But don't worry in the next one there will be more action. I think.
> 
> Uhhh and there's one more thing — english isn't my first language and I didn't find a beta so-- yeah mistakes will happen.


	2. Did you find it hard to breathe?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is so loooong. I'm quite surprised that I translated it in nine days. *Cheers*

Sky didn't even sleep for five minutes. In fact, he didn't even have time to fall asleep. Someone kept poking him on the shoulder.

“Sky?”

“Whaa?” He muttered wrapping his hand around himself.

He didn't feel like talking to anyone right now. All he wanted was for the world to leave him alone. He wanted to sleep. Was it really so much? A few hours of rest and he could further support his comrades. But not now. Not when he was almost asleep.

“I saw the two of you sitting in a tree together, and I need to know where-- Sky this is important! Don't be a jerk and don't turn your back on me when I speak!”

Poking turned to jerking.

“What ya want Waaars?” he grunted, covering his face with his hands as the other hero tried to pull them away.

“I want you to focus. Yes, I know it's hard, but you have to do it,” Sky didn't know if he was being joked about or if Warriors actually felt sorry for him. Eventually, he decided it didn't matter. He’ll say what he has to and go back to sleep. The tall blonde sighed and released Sky's hands. “As soon as you answer me, I'll leave you alone, I promise.”

“All you have to do is tell me where Twilight went” His eyes widened at the sound of the familiar name. And after a while, his mind was flooded with memories that actually happened just a dozen or so minutes ago. He felt his hands begin to shake. He quickly hid them behind his back. But not fast enough. Or maybe his nervousness was evident in some other way?

Who knows, Warriors has always been the perceptive one.

“Are you... are you okay?” He could hear the confusion in his voice which wasn't visible on his face.

“Yes?” He raised his face up to meet his gaze. It is said that liars look away when they lie because they cannot face the truth, or so Gaepora once told him; so if he does the opposite… 

Warriors sighed in resignation and sat down across Sky; so that they were almost on the same level and looked into each other's eyes. Warriors pressed the fingers of both hands together as if he was trying to calm himself. _His pupils are the size of a needle_ , Sky noted.

“Listen, I don't have time for something like that. The two of you talked, you must know why he went to the forest,” he sounded firmly, as the commander should sound. When Sky didn't respond, he sighed and put a hand on his shoulder. “Sky, I really need to know. If he run away--”

“Why would he run away?” Sky frowned, not understanding. “I don't know what you’re talking about, but Twilight went to make the round, that's all. No need to worry.”

Wars was staring at him and Sky could have sworn he was thinking intensely about something. He saw the gears spin behind his eyes. He saw them work.

“Why?”

“I don’t know,” he said lightly and shrugged. He didn't want to share anything that had happened. He knew Twilight wouldn't want it. “It’s not my business.”

“It doesn’t make sense,” He shook his head slowly with doubt. “It’s not his watch.”

"What does it matter, whose watch it was? He might as well go– Look, I don't know what’s your problem but Twilight woke up early and decided to take over Legend’s watch. That’s it. I assure you no one will suffer from this.” He said in one breath, then added. “Warriors, are you okay? You're acting weird…”

Warriors stood up and ran a hand through his hair, absorbing the new information. And Sky found him nodding slowly and mumbling something he didn't understand.

“Wars?”

The man tensed as if he had forgotten he was not alone.

“Oh, yeah. Everything’s fine. Why’re you asking?”

Sky bit his lower lip and tightened his fingers on the cold grass behind his back. “Why were you so interested in it?"

“In what? Sky, you need to improve your speech. I can't guess what you mean every time. You start to take over the old man's bad habits.”

Sky was about to say something but he bit his tongue in time. The wind blew, setting the blonde's blue scarf in motion. Something metallic flashed past his belt. It was a sword. Sky immediately looked away and pretended he didn’t see anything.

“I was talking about Twilight,” he tried to make his voice sound fluent. “Why did he go to the woods and all. Why were you so interested? You seemed…” He lacked the words, “Afraid? In a way?”

Warriors just waved his hand at him.

“Don't beat yourself up over it. I just prefer to know exactly what's going on in the camp. Don’t worry about it too much.”

And then Sky realized who he was talking to.

He loosened the grip and propped his head on his hand.

“Old habits die hard, huh?”

Warriors blinked but smiled nevertheless. “Something like that, forgive me if I scared you”

“It's okay,” he also smiled. “But now I'm going back to sleep, and remember, I'm taking your word for it.”

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━**

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Warriors closed a book. It was light enough to read, but still too cold to hit the road. It was almost four, or so he suspected.

“Can’t sleep?” Rather rhetorical question but it was appropriate to ask.

“Yeah, something like that...”

Sky sat on his left, their elbows touching. Warriors looked at him out of the corner of his eye. He hadn't noticed it before, but the young hero had bloodshot eyes. But not like after crying and more like when eyes have been forced to work for too long.

He looked away before Sky could notice him staring.

Why would Sky be tired? He’d been slacking all day. He did nothing but help Wild cook dinner. He didn't believe it was such a demanding job. But more importantly, Sky who couldn’t sleep? Warriors knew another man. Something must have happened, could it be--

“...What did Twilight do?”

Sky pursed his lips at him. Shit, maybe he should’ve asked in a more discreet way. He’d gotten too used to the fact that no one was questioning his orders.

“What's your problem with Twilight?” Warriors didn't answer, watching Sky's face intently. “I don't know what you want from him and I won't drill down into it, but that's not why I'm here.” He turned his head. His lower lip twitched as if he wanted to say something else, but he bit it before any word came out.

“Okay,” he replied quietly and adjusted the scarf around his neck. Now Warriors felt like he was the _‘bad’_ one. He didn’t know how Sky was doing it, but he could make Warriors feel guilty. Which made no sense at all, he hadn't done anything wrong in the end. He just wanted to know–

“What is this book about?”

He looked at the object in his hands. His smile widened. “This? This is a collection of fairy tales.” He flipped through the book, showing picturesque pictures made with watercolors. Sky held his hand on one of them. He flipped a few pages and Warriors saw what had caught his attention. It was a flower made of diamonds that changed into all possible colors. He smiled. “You have a good eye. It's a fern flower. Although...” He stopped and said sarcastically. “I never thought you were someone who likes trinkets.”

Sky grimaced but chose to ignore him. “I didn't know ferns could have flowers.”

Wars laughed and patted him on the shoulder. “Because they can't. Well at least in Hyrule, that is.”

Sky raised an eyebrow at him.

Warriors laughed again.

“These aren’t Hyrule’s fairy tales, but Letrennia’s. This is a country in the east, beyond the Sunny Mountains. The crossing between them is quite a challenge, but it isn’t impossible. I bought this book from one of the daredevils. They say ferns truly have flowers there, though not as pretty as this one. Ha... Maybe that's better.” he said the latter to himself.

Sky turned the next few pages. And with a surprised look on his face, he realized that he didn't understand anything.

“No wonder. It's not in our language, after all." He said and took the book from Sky's hands and opened it where a red thread with a jagged end separated the pages.

“I don't understand,” he shook his head. "Why do you need a book that tells about folk legends and is in a foreign language?”

Warriors tilted his head back and looked up at the blue-gray sky for a moment. The sun was higher than when he had last seen it.

“It's fun, and it helps me learn the language.” He shrugged. “Anyway, as a captain, it is my duty to be more educated than anybody else-- Oh come on don't give me _that_ look, you know that's not what I meant!”

“Why Redle--”

“Letrennia.”

“Yes. Why this country, if it's so far away? Wouldn't it be better to learn one of the neighbors' languages? I mean--”

“Hmm, I didn't think too much about it, I just bought this book at the marketplace.” He feigned thoughtfulness..

Sky looked at him doubtfully. He was like an open book to Warriors’ eyes. It was so easy to predict his reactions. And just as he suspected, Sky stared at him as if trying to determine if he was telling the truth or not but eventually left the topic alone. Just like usually. And Warriors was more than pleased with it. He didn't have to know everything about Sky. And likewise, Sky didn't need to know everything about him. He didn't need to know that he had learned the languages of all his neighbors a long time ago. Sure, if they would be in need, Warriors will mention it without hesitation but for now he prefered leave it unsaid. _This isn’t the time yet_.

Sky couldn't read people, but he had something else, maybe an intuition, maybe a sixth sense; honestly Warriors couldn’t tell. And thanks to it he was able to tell when something was wrong. Which is good. If he didn’t, he would’ve been lying in his grave a long time ago. He might have been a great swordsman but his kindness and openness were his biggest drawbacks. Even now, Warriors could easily stick a _dagger_ between his ribs--

“So what was the last fairy tale you read?” Sky said, suppressing a yawn and leaned shamelessly against his shoulder.

“I'll tell you, but don't make a living pillow out of me.”

The quiet 'mhm' was all he got, but Sky still stayed where he was before.

Undeterred, he began to tell the story of the legendary ruler of Letrennia who had three sons. About how one day he decided it was time for them to find wives. And that they were to take bows and shoot an arrow in one of the world's directions, and where that arrow’d hit, their other half shall be.

“Quite a bad idea if you ask me. It’d be better if he made an alliance with powerful families inside or outside the country.” He waved his free hand. “Not to mention how many things could go wrong. I mean, what if an arrow ended up in the hut of thieves or enemy’s spies? The kingdom could be ruined!”

“Mhm.”

The lack of a complicated answer didn’t put him off. He’d never had anyone to talk to about the books he read before, most of them immediately dismissed him, more or less delicately. Sky might not show him much attention, but-- Hylia, how good it was to talk to someone...

And so he continued. About where the brothers ended up; that the youngest hit a swamp (“as I said”) and had to take a frog home.

“And this ruler, in general, was acting strangely. Like, first the arrows and now he makes their future wives sew a robe for himself-- Weird, but I won't judge.” He was silent for a moment. “Or you know what, Sky? I will! I think it’s stupid; the king's wife should be able to deal with politics, know about economics or even management! If he wants a new dress, he should sew it himself--” in the last moment he made dodge, a twig flew past his head.

“Could you shut up for five fucking minutes?! It’s the middle of the bloody night you moron!”

Oh, Warriors didn't know the devil had a pink streak...

“Why do you have to be so mean from early morning? A little smile wouldn't kill you, Leg. Am I right, Sky? Sky? Ahhh, I told you not to lounge on me…”

  
  
  
  
  
  


**━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━**

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Legend stopped. He couldn't bear it, he just couldn’t fucking bear it when he saw everyone working on gathering the camp, while Warriors like some kind of nobelman, was sitting in the shade of a tree and reading some nonsense. As if he thought he was somehow better than them.

“Maybe a fresh birch sap, Captain? I see soft grass and shade are serving you well on this _boiling_ morning when everyone else is working like _dogs_ but you.” Sarcasm poured out from all over his form

Warriors acted as if he had just noticed him. He closed the book slowly and looked at him with an expert eye-- ( _He's doing it on purpose, aren’t he?!_ ) And then he replied just as sarcastically. “Indeed, birch sap would taste _splendiferously_ while reading. However, I would not disdain if you brought me a glass for it since nothing tastes the same if it is served in a consummate way.”

Legend clenched his fists. _This bastard wants to defeat him with his own weapon--_

“Yeah sure and maybe some cinnamon cookies for that?!” He crossed his arms over his chest and leaned forward. “move your lazy ass up and help someone, you lump!”

Warriors just smiled and spread his hands. "You see I can't."

“My ass, of course you can! Now move! Just watching you coasting yourself irritates me!”

“I would be very happy to grant you your request, however, as you can see,” he pointed to Sky lounging on his knees and sneered, “I can't. Anyway, I have permission from old man.”

Legend frowned. Since when did Time let slack off? “No, you don--” Someone slapped him hard on the back. He staggered and almost lost his balance. Oh how he hated it when--

“Don’t slouch.” As if Legend was slouching. He was leaning over. LEANING OVER. It was not his fault that some people couldn’t spot the difference. “He got permission until Sky is up, or by eight…” Twilight continued talking, but Legend noticed something. A shadow ran across Warriors' face. Distinct and clear as if he was not fully aware of it. And he guessed it was, because he almost immediately returned to his daily cheeky grin. He blinked. Maybe his eyes were playing tricks on him? He grimaced. Oh yeah, well fuck, he was just getting crazy from lack of sleep. _Well I’ll be damned_.

“I don't understand why of everyone here, it is Sky who gets the special treatment.” Legend grunted, brushing invisible dust from his shoulders. It was rather a habit than the actual dirt on the clothes. But hey, forewarned is forearmed. Legend liked pretty things. And dust was _not_ pretty.

“He needs rest,” Twilight answered softly. Legend just snorted at it. What the fuck did he know about the need of rest? When it came to being tired, Legend was a fucking expert.

“If anyone here needs a rest then it’s definitely me! Especially after I was awakened by mr. ‘I’m gonna be a politician now’” he cast a glance at Warriors and again it seemed like he wasn’t even looking at him but on Twilight. Huh, maybe his eyes weren't playing tricks on him.

He'd noticed it before, but there was tension between these two. A strange tension. Legend suspected that they had argued about something in the morning, and each of them tried to pretend that everything was fine when neither of them really got over it. It’s always been like that. And Legend was by no means concerned. It wasn’t his business after all.

“Whatever you say. So what? Will you get me that birch sap and a glass?” Warriors smirked, while Twilight looked confused and walked away shortly after, saying something about having a lot of work to do.

Legend snorted again, he left holding his nose high.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


“Doesn't that piss you off?” He asked, leaning against a tree.

“Hmmm what? Ahh you're talking about-- no, not really. To tell the truth, I don't understand why you have such a problem with it. I mean-- it's not like _you_ are doing something.” He grimaced. Uh, he should go to Hurule, he would back him up.

It’s a pity that whenever they approached cities, Hyrule started to panic and act like some wild child of the forest. He spent most of his time alone back then, damn knows where in the woods.

“ _Excuse me_? Unlike them I already did everything I had to!” He crossed arms over his chest.

Wild was picking the fire with a stick and seemed to be paying no attention to Legend. It was as if Wild wanted to tell him, straight to his face, that burned pieces of wood were better company than he was. It made him even more irritated.

His fingers tightened on his shoulders. This day wasn’t going well at all. First, an unpleasant wake-up and removing shards of coal from his hair, then dealing with Warriors, panicking Hyrule and now, Wild ignored him openly. Lovely! It's just fucking wonderful! And what else? Maybe they won't let them into town?!

Wild got up and dusted off his dirt-stained knees.

“So what's your problem Legend?” He picked up a metal bucket full of water and began to gradually pour it from the outside to the inside of the embers. “Are you jealous or what?”

“Je--jealous?! _About what exactly_ ?” He began to beat a nervous rhythm with the sole of his shoe. Wild was never particularly sharp-witted, but he had no idea it was _that_ bad. He was looking for hell knows what, yet the message was clear. Warriors and Sky were slacking. And that's the problem. Legend would even buy that crap about Sky needing a nap, (which was a total _bullshit;_ just how long can someone sleep?!), but Warriors could simply put him aside and help gather the camp.

Wild set the bucket on the ground and pushed the fringe from his forehead. He was all wet with sweat, unlike Legend, who stood in the shade of a tree. The weather here was terrible in general. Legend hoped they would find their way to the portal soon; somewhere where he wouldn't have to worry about a tan on his knees for barely three hours of walking. Beige and orange were never his colors. It was--

He shook his head.

“I don't know but usually when you whine it’s because you're jealous.” he gasped and crouched down to mix the remains of the fireplace.

“And what else? Are you gonna tell me that my trashmouthing is the result of constantly sleeping on the ground, ha? Who told ya such nonsense?!”

The hero shrugged. “Twilight.”

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━**

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


So here they were. In the town and-- this wasn’t exactly what Sky expected. It was by no means similar to Skyloft. The town was mostly wooden and only a few buildings had stone elements.

It’s a pity. Sky was hoping for something... more _pronounced._ This town wasn’t different from the towns he had seen before. Even the street on which they were walking wasn’t paved.

“Is this the place we were looking for?”

Four jumped up to him and pulled his arm down.

“It is,” he gave him a curious look, and Sky could have sworn his eyes turned golden-hue for a moment. “Why do you ask?”

“I’m just--” It was kinda silly to mention but a small part of him wanted Four to deny it. To say that they actually went to the wrong place and their true destination was further down, and they would leave this place in a moment to go to the real, prettier one. Well, Sky was not a child, it wasn’t proper for him to complain about something so bland. He should be thankful he won't have to sleep under the open sky tonight. “No, it's nothing,” he smiled. Four smiled too, he squeezed his hand once more, and ran forward, leaving him behind. Sky involuntarily began to listen to the conversation being held next to him.

“I don't like it here.” Hyrule muttered looking around wildly.

“You said it like this town was an exception,” Sky couldn't see but he was pretty sure Legend rolled his eyes. “Every time we go to town, you complain that you don't like it. Anyway, I already explained it to you yesterday…” Legend spoke somehow... weird. Different than usual. Slowly and clearly and…

He turned around. Pulled eyebrows, tense jaw, a try to master the killing gesticulation... Yes. He was definitely comforting him. In his weird and twisted way, but still.

Legend must have noticed that he was staring-- not good, it wasn’t by any means good--

“Sky come here and be useful at last for something” he exclaimed and rubbed his eyes with fingers.

Sky didn't quite know when his legs led him to him.

“Take care of him, my head hurts from all this talking”

Hyrule looked like he had just been hit in the face. Nevertheless he continued.

“We got here rather quickly. Doesn't that seem a little weird to you?” Hyrule spoke in a low voice. Sky didn't know who he was asking the question to.

“Well--” he started.

"No, not really. I will finally be able to sleep in a normal bed." Legend yawned slowly, covering his mouth with a hand.

“I don't know, I don't like this place.” His large, hazel eyes swirled. He studied every corner, every side-street and even the wooden balconies. As if he couldn't stop them. As if they were moving without his will. Which was stupid. Sky knew Hyrule was not a fan of cities and large communities. But he couldn't help but think that... He was exaggerating.

Sure, they had to flee the cities several times because the inhabitants weren’t huge fans of the heroes, someone from their team _borrowed_ or destroyed something. But this town? So far everything seemed friendly.

“Yeaaah, name me at least one city, town or village in which you felt comfortable; because you know, it just so happens that every time we are in a built-up area, you always whine terribly so that we leave as soon as possible.”

Sky grimaced. He had never been great at comforting but Legend... It was a whole different league.

“Umm…” He cut in on a conversation. “I think... I think Legend is trying to tell you, that there's no point in getting ahead of ourselves. We just got here and--”

“It's not just that,” Hyrule interrupted him and leaned in his direction. He resisted the urge to step back. If time stopped, Sky would be able to count all the freckles on his dusky face. “Remember what Time said? We weren't supposed to be here until evening. Late evening! It's not even two o'clock right now!”

Sky heard Legend mumble a curse.

Sky bit his lip. He didn't like it either. He shook his head.

“I think you are overreacting. I don't think anybody here is set against us. I don't know about you, but I didn't even notice anyone guarding the entrance. I haven't seen a single soldier here. You know what that means?”

Hyrule looked at him with those large, rushing eyes.

“That they are hiding well?” Yes, Sky was fucking hopeless at what he was doing. Why had Legend called for him? He wanted to bring him down or what?

“What? No! That means the town is safe enough that they don't need them-- watch out!”

Sky grabbed his arm at the last moment. The boy almost fell over the nearby balk.

The balk was sticking out of a side alley. Sky's eyes narrowed slightly. Why were there such long pieces of wood here? He scanned the grounds but found nothing suspicious. The back entrances to the shops and apartments seemed to stare at him accusingly. He shook his head. The whole city was wooden. _And he dares to tell Hyrule that he was overreacting?_

“If there's anything you should be afraid of,” Legend sneered, both hands on his hips. “The ninja rangers lurking in the back alleys should be at the bottom of your list. Wooden balks should come second.” The corners of Sky’s mouth twitched involuntarily.

“What about the first one?” Hyrule asked as he regained his balance. The disorientation showed on his face.

“I'll be, if you don't stop whining right now!”

At the exact same moment Time stopped and turned around. He said that they were in the center of the town and would have to split up from now on to arrange all errands before evening. Customarily, Time and Four were to go to the blacksmith and then look around for an inn where they could stay. The most familiar ones, Legend and Hyrule, were supposed to look for potions. The spices were to be handled by Wild and Twilight.

“I want to go with them,” Sky declared. He hesitated for a moment to say it, but the guilt prevailed. He preferred not to leave Twilight alone.

Time turned to face him and Sky stuck his chest forward to give himself courage. The oldest hero's eyesight was not something he liked to feel on himself. He always looked at him appraisingly. And Sky _didn't_ like it.

“I have another task for you,” He said dryly. “You'll go with Warriors to ask the locals if anything strange has happened in this area recently. Weird beasts, portals, dark blood and the rest.”

Sky was about to protest, but Wind overtook him, waving his arms as if to get everyone's attention.

“What about me? Why don’t I have my own assignment? For your consciousness, I can do as much or even more than any of you can!” Saying this he straightened proudly showing his teeth.

Time looked at him, and Sky felt that he could breathe again. He had no idea he was holding his breath.

“You can choose who you want to go with.”

Sky frowned. Why could Wind choose who to go with and he couldn't?

_He obviously doesn't like you, that's why._

Wind didn't seem pleased with the answer. His face clouded over. Hyrule (snatched from his paranoid bubble) noticed this immediately and ran to the young hero. He knelt on one knee in front of him and put a hand on his shoulder. He was about to say something cheering, but someone else did it before him. Someone Sky wasn't expecting.

Time.

“If you think I gave you a choice because I don't think you're good enough at any of these things, then you’re wrong.” And then he smiled. “I consider you good for any of it." Time didn't smile often, but when he did, everything around him seemed to brighten up. Sky almost smiled too but then realized that this smile wasn’t destined for him, but for Wind. He swallowed hard. After all, Time never smiled at him. And he probably never will.

He didn't even know why he was so concerned about it. Maybe it was his peaceful nature that made him keep on good terms with others? Or maybe he just liked to see smiles on people's faces?

Or maybe... he wanted Time to finally accept him?

He felt a force pull him back. He was already reaching for the sword, but he stopped when a familiar voice reached his ears.

“Sooo where do you want to go first?”

He had to get lost in thoughts. There was no one in his sight anymore. They had to diverge.

“I don't really care. You can choose.” He shrugged and turned to his companion.

“Hmmm let's see,” and now straightened, with both hands on his hips Warriors looked ahead. Out of the corner of his eye, Sky saw a group of girls passing by and giggling at the sight. Their clothes were airy, as if made of curtains, their skin tanned on different colours. All bodies covered in jewelry... “We can start with these lovely ladies,” he winked at them with a mischievous smirk, making them giggled even louder. Warriors bowed theatrically.

“We should go to the tavern, I think…” Sky had spent too much time with Warriors to pay attention to his advances. “Uhh, I don't know, I'm not very good at... gathering information? If that makes sense…”

“That's why I'm here.”

Sky looked at him doubtfully. He turned around and went to sit on a bench in the shade. The sun made him feel dizzy. In Skyloft it was always colder than on the surface; but the temperature here was something else, maybe not at volcano level but still. The most noticeable was the lack of wind, especially inside the buildings.

“Sky?”

Sky looked up at him and bit his lip.

“I don't really understand-- I mean-- no offense or something,” he made an indefinite motion with his hand. “But why am I on the team with you? I'm not suitable for spying…”

"You say it like we're some kind of spies,” Warriors laughed, but stopped when Sky didn't join him. “Which we are definitely not. Anyway…” He waved his hand and sat down next to him with stretched out legs. “Time probably wanted to distribute strength. It's better to fight in two, especially when you know someone is defending your back,” he elbowed him to the side. “After all, you are the best swordsman of all of us aaaand you are very perceptive! You always capture the most details!”

At this moment, Sky realizes what Warriors was inefficiently, but still, trying to do. He looked at his face. A wry smile and focused eyes. Tense muscles. Yes, that's definitely it. He was comforting him. His fingers tightened on the fabric of the tunic. It made him feel even worse. These weren't Warriors' problems, they were his.

“Yeah, I guess-- I guess you're right.” He said while getting up.

He didn't know if he believed Warriors' words but he decided it didn't matter. They had a mission to complete. That's all that mattered now.

“Of course I am!” Warriors straightened.

And then they went towards the tavern.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Or at least they were supposed to go there. The problem was, they had no idea where the tavern was. The town turned out to be much larger than they previously thought. They were already doing the second round on the same streets. Sky was under the impression that he was about to collapse. If it was up to him, he would have asked one of the passersby where the tavern was but Warriors insisted.

_‘I can find a tavern’_

_‘You're looking at a specialist, Sky!’_

_‘I don't need any additional help’_

_Sure and here are the results_ , he thought bitterly as he pushed wet hair back from his face. _Why does he have to be so stubborn?_

“I found it!” Sky looked up, hope glimmered in his eyes. “I found the marketplace!” The hope was gone.

“Why do we even want to go to the marketplace?” he gasped. "Weren’t we supposed to go to the tavern…?”

“Sky, Sky, Sky tavern isn’t the only place where you can find something. Marketplaces, brothels, workshops; All gatherings of people are mines of information!” Sky rested his hands on his knees, still panting. Warriors looked at him uncertainly. “Are you okay? Are you sure you don't have problems with breathing or something?”

Sky shook his head abruptly.

“...’M just tired.”

“Aww the marketplace is not so far… It’s over there, see?” he pointed to a narrow street filled with stands. “You will definitely be able to get there…” He said, and after a while he started rummaging through the bag slung around his waist; he pulled out the bundle and tossed it to Sky. “Here, it's water. But don't drink all of it!”

Sky took the opportunity to take a few gulps, watching Warriors' face change with each moment he holded the water bag. He decided to not abuse his kindness and promptly handed over the item. Warriors shook it, and when he was sure there was still water inside, he put it away.

Then they moved on. The alley was narrow, but they managed to cross it without bumping into anyone. Stalls stretched out at its sides. Their roofs were bright and colorful. _Probably to not focus the sun_. It was mostly jewelry stalls, Sky noted. They shone with gold and silver and copper. He wondered if he’d touched the trinkets, would they melt at the slightest touch. When they left the street, they saw a huge square with even more stalls. There was a well in the center.

“So how do you collect information?” Sky moved closer to Warriors so that no one else could hear him. There were many more people in the square than in the streets they had previously walked through.

The marketplace was well organized. All stalls were grouped and didn’t take up space for walking around the square. Sky could see the flower and plant area. It looked a bit like entering a magical forest. He was even a bit disappointed when he noticed that behind the branches of trees and colorful flowers was a base of a townhouse.

“It depends on the situation,” Warriors muttered. “If it's someone you know, it's best to ask a question and keep quiet, staring that person straight in the eyes. If they have weaker mental resistance, they will break.“ he shrugged indifferently. “For some reason they need to justify themself. Weird I know, but that's how it works.” He glanced at him out of the corner of his eye and smiled as Sky swallowed the lump in his throat. The very thought that Warriors would use it against him made him sick. He supposedly knew he would never do it, and yet something in the back of his head was asking him 'what if?'.

Fortunately, Warriors didn't notice his confusion, he gaped at the young saleswoman with auburn hair and laughing eyes. She waved at them with a hand filled with silver bracelets. Her stall was full of colorful flowers in pots and decorative baskets. He swallowed loudly. “I swear to Hylia, all women in this town are goddesses enchanted in human bodies--”

Sky grabbed his arm as he was about to turn towards the stand “Wars remember why we're here. You might consider having a garden later.”

Warriors looked gloomy, but nodded. Sky noticed this and started talking right away.

“So what strategy are we going to use? We don't know these people…”

“None. We will ask without beating around the bush and offer money. Thinkably we’ll buy something from their stands.” He waved his hand dismissively.

Sky frowned. Why did he tell him about that strategy earlier? 

But there was something he was more concerned about. He ran a hand down his belt. He had six, maybe seven rupees with him. He'd never bribed anyone but he didn't think that was enough.

“Do you have something to pay with?” He asked.

Warriors looked at him in disbelief.

“Time gave us funds. You were there.”

He was?

“I haven’t paid much attention to it…” he muttered.

Warriors said nothing but Sky could feel his worried gaze on him. He must finally get a good night's sleep. He was too distracted. He didn’t feel bad so far. He was a bit tired but he managed to walk without much problem. He wondered how long he could stay on his feet though. Three hours of sleep wasn’t too much, but it was enough to recover a little. Would it be enough for him to function all day at top speed? Definitely not.

_But maybe today will be better_ , he thought, _maybe today Goddess will send me a good night's sleep._

He smiled dreamily. He won't be on watch today and he'll get a bed. A real bed, not just some straw mattress. Perfect sleeping conditions. Maybe there was a chance he would fall asleep…

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


Sky and Warriors spent a good hour asking the sellers if anything suspicious was going on in the area. Nobody answered them. Some sellers completely ignored the topic, others asked if they wanted to buy something, and still others just frowned at them as if they didn't understand the question. Eventually they ended up with no information and two copper cups. Perhaps Wild would make some use of them…

“What are you? Seven? What do you need that for? It's just caramelized sugar!”

Sky grimaced. Uh huh, Warriors was getting more and more annoyed. Now it even pissed him off that Sky was buying sweets. It was rare to see a captain like this. He shifted uneasily and struck a nervous tact on the shoulder pad. Sky wanted to tell him to stop because it could bring unwanted attention to them but he preferred to not provoke him.

“Come on, it's just sweets,” he sighed, and before Warriors could interrupt, he added. “I'll give you half for, as you put it, you had to endure Legend’s slandering while I slept.”

Warriors had been telling him this since he was awakened by Hyrule. How heroically he had to resist Legends' verbal attacks and at the same time not move when Sky pressed him to the ground. _A real hero..._

“I don't want any sweets.” He grunted impassively and crossed his arms like an offended young lady.

Sky resisted the urge to roll his eyes. “I know how you feel, I'm irritable myself too, but we can't take offense at the whole world. We'll go to the tavern in a minute, I promise. We'll surely find something there.”

Warriors must’ve believed him because he had stopped fidgeting. The fingers stopped beating and instead tightened their grip around the fabric. It was also possible that he realized himself how suspicious he looked. It was hard to say.

“So…” Sky began, waiting for the person in front of him to decide what to buy. “What kind of sweets do you like?”

Warriors gave him a telling look. “ _I don’t_.”

There had never been a lot of choice in Skyloft. There were sweet things like nuts in honey or preserves, but it was not the same. At the moment he wasn't sure but there were maybe two or three kinds of candy at the stand itself. Completely incomparable to what he saw in front of him right now. He only tried one kind himself, and that was before he was accepted into the academy. It was the best thing he had ever eaten. After that, there was no chance to get sweets. Well, maybe except for an accident in the kitchen--

“What's for you honey?” The saleswoman smiled at him with her green painted lips. Florid complexion, wrinkles in the corners of the eyes, dull hair tied up in a bun with a decorative clip. She couldn't be more than forty. “Oh, but we don't know each other, do we?”

“I suppose not,” he smiled too. She tilted her head slightly and regarded him fondly. Despite himself, he shifted from foot to foot. He was not used to such looks.

The woman took off her white glove. She leaned over the counter, to shake hands with him. There was a ring on each of her fingers. He paid the most attention to the one with the peacock eye. It was turning from blue to green, and from green to blue. A never ending circle.

“Tamira.”

Sky shook the offered hand without hesitation.

“Sky,” he said, and then added. “Oh, and this is Warriors.”

Tamira didn't even look at the tall blonde, her eyes were still fixed on Sky. Moreover, she still didn't let go of his hand. He narrowed his eyes.

“Ma'am?”

The woman came to her senses. She released Sky as if she were burned by his touch and moved behind the counter. Her smile quivered. She pushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear. As she did so, the jewelry on her fingers shimmered with a metal glow.

“My apologies-- I,” she giggled nervously. “It's just…” She put her hand to her mouth, trying to calm herself. “You look exactly like my son-- well maybe except...” She hesitated, but said nothing. She turned her gaze to the side; Sky followed it, but didn’t find anything. “It’s meaningless now. He's not alive anymore.”

Well, now he was uncomfortable. “I'm sorry--” he began.

“Oh hun, don't agonise over _it_ . It doesn't matter. What's done is done,” she hummed, putting on a glove. _How… how could she say it like that…_ She gave him a faint smile, and Sky fought the urge to drop the conversation on Warriors. “So what kind of sweets are you looking for?”

He would like to leave as soon as possible. Sky looked anxiously around the stand. So many colorful sweets. Candies, lollipops, hard candies. He was feeling dizzy with such a large choice. Or from the sad gaze of the saleswoman who kept looking at him. He should walk away. He should walk away and don’t look back--

“I, umm well-- do you, do you have... anise candy?” He stammered. The only ones he knew. The only ones he ate.

She looked at him sadly and shook her head. “I don't have these, hun. Where are you from? Nobody here has made anise candies since-- for a long time…”

Well, that's something new.

“Uh I'm-- I'm from--” he stuttered. “From afar.” Well, he wasn't technically lying, but even to his ears it sounded rather suspicious. He looked at Warriors for help. The blonde didn’t even blink at him, he stared longingly at the candies tightly wrapped in a paper with a painted cow. He reached to his belt for a pouch. He took out five rupees from it. He showed them to Tamira on a slightly trembling hand; he asked how much he would get for it.

“Fudges?” She blinked. “About twenty pieces, honey.”

_Please stop calling me th--_

Warriors gave him a strange look as he realized Sky was pointing to the candy he was staring at.

“You don’t have to--” he began.

“I’ll take them.” Sky ignored him completely.

Tamira smiled and started putting candies in a paper bag. The bracelets rang dully.

“Sky you really don’t have to…” He started again.

“But I want to. And I’m the one who pays for it, not you.”

Sky paid and picked up the pack. He shook it. He noticed that there were definitely more than twenty of them there. He looked at the saleswomen with undisguised surprise.

She just grinned and tilted her head to the side. Her white teeth contrasted with the unusual lipstick. “You're way too skinny,” she said. “You should eat more” Her eyes seemed distant, yet so terribly sad.

Sky shivered.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  


''Well now you are five rupees lighter. I hope you are pleased with yourself.”

Sky ignored his comment and handed him the paper bag. “Take it and don't whine”

Warriors grunted under his breath but picked up one candy in his hand. He played with it for a while; he shuffled it from one hand to the other but finally unwrapped the paper. He tossed the fudge into his mouth and grimaced theatrically. He was chewing it reluctantly at first, but his face seemed to lighten with each passing moment. There was no sign of the grimace anymore. Immediately after that, he reached for another one. And then another.

Sky also reached out for candy. He pulled it back as his left forearm stung. He grimaced. It was as if someone had put hot coal to his skin. He suppressed a hiss. Someone attacked him? No, that couldn't be it. He knew it wasn't happening, that he was just imagining it, but he couldn't help himself. He stopped. With a wavering hand, he pushed the sailcloth, tunic, chainmail, and shirt from his shoulder in turn.

“Something happened?” Warriors paused too, chewing further.

As he thought, there was nothing, not even the slightest trace of a burn, only pale skin. Why--

“Sky?”

Sky looked up.

“No.” He replied, eyes wide open.

Warriors said nothing and just stared at Sky with worry. His eyes were piercing him through .

Sky swallowed and looked away.

“It may sound strange, but... something that doesn't exist hurt me?” Warriors didn't reply, and Sky kept talking, not knowing why. “When I was a kid-- when I was younger, I-- I got burned... Right there,” he pointed a trembling finger at the previously stinging forearm. “And before you say anything, I know it sounds so stupid, but... I felt exactly the same for a moment? I swear I'm not hurt or anything like that! If you don't believe me then you can check it yourself!” Sky began waving his arms hysterically until he felt a firm hand tighten on his shoulder. He held his breath. _Please tell me I'm not crazy_ , he thought frantically.

“Hey Sky, look at me. You're not crazy. It's just--” he hesitated. His eyes were distant. “When I was in the war, I knew people who-- who lost their limbs in a fight, or had an amputation. They--” he trailed off and blinked rapidly as if to ward off the images before his eyes. “Some of them experienced pain in their limbs that they no longer had. They might have had a severed arm right next to the collarbone, and they might still have sore fingers. I think…”

But he _did_ have an arm. What was he talking about? Sky didn't understand _. He has an arm. He has an arm, doesn't he? Why would--_

Sky looked at him with horror in his eyes.

What--

That was weird; Warriors kept talking but... Sky didn't understand any of it? He stared blankly at the hero's face. His blue scarf fell down. He felt pressure on his shoulders, both shoulders. Why was Warriors shaking him? A black butterfly flew in front of his nose. He followed him with his eyes. He had never seen a black butterfly before. Warriors' distraught face appeared in his vision immediately afterward. He moved his mouth like a fish. He looked comical. Sky laughed, or at least he wanted to do so. His chest hurt. It was empty. He couldn't make a sound. He couldn't breathe. _Why couldn't he--_ Black butterflies flashed before his eyes again. Except now there were more of them. They disappeared behind Warriors' back. At the moment he wasn't sure if they were actually butterflies. They looked more like beetles. Yes, beetles. They could be black. Or were they just bumblebees?

Something hit the ground hard. It took him a moment to realize that it was his knees that gave up. Warriors was still in front of him. He leaned towards him. He was still talking. Sky didn't understand. He didn't under _stand, He didn't understand, He didn't understand._ Why didn't he understand anything?! Why couldn’t he catch his breath?! He wasn’t running! He wasn't even walking!

“Sky, breathe, please! I can't--”

A thought shot through his mind. Warriors _wasn’t_ the one who was shaking him. _He_ was. He understood now. He was hyperventilating. A blue scarf appeared in his field of vision. His eyes widened.

He was hyperventilating _in front of_ Warriors.

He looked at the hero's face in pure terror.

Warriors noticed this and took the chance.

“It's going to be okay, Sky. It'll be over soon, I promise, but you have to do as I tell you,” he said restlessly.

Sky nodded. He wasn’t sure if it was noticeable.

“Okay. Okay then. Try to-- Try to take a deep breath in slowly through your nose so that the air is farther than your chest. Then exhale through your mouth. I– I'll show you. Repeat after me.”

On the first try, Sky felt like he was choking. But with next attempts he did better. At some point, Warriors stopped saying "inhale" and "exhale" and began to say things like "everything is fine", "you're doing it right", "it will be over soon". Before Sky noticed, Warriors hugged him gently, and then awkwardly massaged the circles on his back. Sky's head was in the crease of his neck. Sky felt how tense he was.

Somehow he got the strength to reach out and pat him on the back and grunt: “I'm okay, I'm okay now.”

Warriors held him for a moment, but finally let go.

“Thanks.” He croaked without meeting his eyes.

Warriors pulled something from his belt. It was a water bag. This time he didn't say anything and handed it to Sky. He drank it to the very dregs.

“I--” he began and pressed his lips into a thin line. “Sorry, I know you're sensitive to... to such things, and still I-- I just…” He ran a hand through his hair. “I’m sorry.”

“‘S okay.” The last thing he wanted was Warriors worrying about him.

The other hero looked like he wanted to argue but said nothing. He leaned miserably against the wall. He lowered his head down. Sky couldn't see his face behind the curtain of blond hair.

“Sky, are you okay? You seem on edge since morning…”

Sky blinked. He? On edge? Was it really so visible? His fingers tightened on the fabric of the tunic. Not good. Not good at all. What should he do? Was he supposed to lie? To tell the truth? He didn't want to worry him with stupid things but... Warriors always knew when he was lying anyway so…

“I…” he looked down. “I didn't sleep well the last... two nights? Maybe three? I'm not sure…” He mumbled as he adjusted the sailcloth, then quickly added. “But I don't think it's anything serious.” Yes. He was definitely sure of that. And he hoped Warriors would believe him. The last thing he wanted was for the whole team to treat him like a piece of glass... Sky’ve had worse, much worse. Especially when he was looking for Zelda. If Warriors had seen him then, turning back every few steps, avoiding open spaces and dark places, how he was looking at daggers in the armory... he would have been considered mad.

Warriors looked up. He studied him with his eyes. He bit his lip but didn't cut it.

“I don't quite believe you, but I'll give it up today.” He said slowly without taking his eyes off him, and Sky almost sighed in relief. “But if you don't get better in two days, I'll tell the rest. I can't risk their safety, and neither can yours.”

“Okay,” he said softly. He got more than he had hoped for anyway.

He looked around. They were in one of the side streets. There were no stalls here, only entrances to wooden houses. He breathed a sigh of relief. For some reason, the mere thought of someone else seeing him in this state made him uneasy.

_I wonder if this is how Twilight--_

Warriors sat down next to him and reached for the candies lying on the ground. Sky must have dropped the bag when he panicked. He began collecting them back into the bag, one by one. When he finished, he unpacked one. Sky glanced at him out of the corner of his eye. He was pale. Oh Goddess, he was pale, he was _so_ pale-- he had to do something, he had to--

Sky looked at him meaningfully.

“And you say you don't like sweets?” Warriors grimaced.

“You gonna keep reminding me of this for the rest of the day?” He said with a full mouth.

“No,” He smiled. “I'll keep reminding you of this until everyone knows you secretly have a sweet tooth!”

Warriors rolled his eyes.

“Say what you want, but I'm no guttler,” He swallowed. “I haven't eaten sweets since I was thirteen.”

Sky looked at him.

“Why is that?”

He suspected why, but still preferred to defuse the tense atmosphere. A story or two was just what he needed.

“In the army,” He started, and Sky twitched uneasily. “Relax, it won't be anything violent. There was a ban on buying sweets in the army. They said that if you eat one, you immediately want another and another.” As he spoke, his face took on an expression of comic contemplation. “It was something about the sugar level or something. I don't know. Anyway, the message was clear: no sweets. Even for the kids. And then the war came and we couldn't aford spending money on stupid things…” He sighed, staring at the bag of candy. But after a while he brightened up. “But before I started training, I was eating sweets - something similar to these.” He pointed. “Except these had no caramel inside. At least I think so…”

Sky hesitantly reached for the candy. This time he didn't feel pain. He threw away the paper and stared at the brown square for a moment. Eventually he started chewing.

It was nothing like anise candies, not that Sky would particularly remember them. But he was sure of one thing, they had a completely different structure. The fudges were soft and milky. He reached for another.

“You know that I studied at a knight's academy?” Warriors looked at him but nodded; everyone knew it. “We too, were forbidden to buy sweets, except that it was only journeymen. Everyone else could do what they wanted.”

Warriors frowned. “Not fair.”

“Not fair,” He agreed. “One of the cooks would buy candy for herself and leave them in a hiding place in the kitchen. I knew it and so did the others. So one day I gathered a group of boys to steal them.”

Warriors stared at him in disbelief “You and stealing?” He smiled broadly and slapped him on the back. “Now you got me interested!”

Sky laughed and continued.

“The problem was that we didn't know where the cache was. So we searched blindly for it. And we would probably find it sooner or later but I accidentally hit a hot pan with my shoulder.”

The smile faded from his face. Actually, Wars looked like he choked on a fudge. “You WHAT?” _Damn…_

He laughed again, if a little forcefully. Even nervously.

“All the adults ran into the kitchen after I screamed. They dressed my wound, gave me a red potion, and you know what?” He asked although he did not expect an answer. “One of the boys blurted out. All the teachers were outraged, because ‘how can a nine-year-old boy with quite good grades break into the kitchen looking for sweets?!’ And their sermons…” He hid his face in hands. “Goddess…” he howled desperately at the memory of Gaepora's sinister face.

“Informers are the worst” Warriors agreed.

“What can you know about informers?” He looked at him from behind his fingers.

“Enough, I can assure you,” Warriors laughed, but there was a hint of bitterness to it. _Sky should know his place better--_ “How long have they been angry with you? A week? A month?”

“You ask... You ask how long were they angry at me?” Sky felt emotions buzzing under his skin. “They didn't leave me alone until the end of the academy! Henya still reminds me of it even though I'm a Skyloft Knight!”

Sky straightened and turned to face Warriors. Warriors' eyes narrowed.

“And you know what's the worst thing?” He leaned conspiratorially towards him. “That out of the eight involved, I was the only punished. Only me! Nobody else! No one even told them that what they did was wrong! And where’s the justice here?! Ughh It’s so-- it's so...!”

“Unfair.”

“Yes! Totally unfair!”

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't think that I'd post this chapter so soon, but here we are. 
> 
> Also the school is starting tomorrow, and I'm-- it's stressing me a lot, but I know I'm not the only person with that problem sooo if anyone here feels similar-- I hope I made this day a little better for you!
> 
> Fun fact: the fairy tales/legends Warriors is talking about are the legend of fern flower and The Frog Princess. In July I was studing russian and as a exercise read the later one.


	3. Did you lose what won't return?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Back in old golden wattpad days I used to write comedies. Is this chapter a comedy though...?

And so here was the tavern. All wooden and without a second floor. Dark, full of people and garlands of garlic hanging on every balk from the ceiling. As Sky followed Warriors inside, he felt dizzy. It was stuffy as if no one had aired here in weeks. The smell of cheap wine was in the air, and it was a deadly combination with the stink of burnt meat. Although Warriors didn’t seem to mind; with a brisk step, he walked over to the bar and leaned on his elbows. He smiled from ear to ear.

Sky came over there too, though much less confident.

“I can see the business is spinning.” The blonde said and the bartender who has been polishing the glasses so far, got up and walked over to them.

Sky looked around. As far as he could see, it was divided into two parts; side and main hall. There were actually a few people in the side room sipping drinks. Pretty good move for such an early hour. Waitresses in colorful, flowing skirts walked between the tables, bringing beer, wine or meat of questionable quality. Like all residents, they also had jewelry on their hands. Copper jewelry to be precise. They had to be of lower status.

He glanced at Warriors out of the corner of his eye. Sky wondered if he said it out of habit or if he actually noticed it.

“I'm not complaining.” The bartender shrugged and looked them up and down. He was a round-shouldered man with a long face and sharp features. He had a short beard and a curled mustache. Curves formed on his head, and there were white streaks in his light hair. Sky decided he didn't look suspicious. In fact, he looked entirely harmless. The only thing that made him stand out was a precious earring in his right ear and his clothes, which looked to be of better quality. He must have been doing well.

“What for you?”

He quickly got into business. Other sellers asked them about where they came from, their names, and things like that. This one didn't seem to pay much attention to it. What seemed to interest him was their appearance, or rather the things they owned. He looked at them judging their worth, but truthfully Sky didn't care. He didn’t know the man, so he was not particularly interested in his opinion of him. Anyway, it was even better. If he was a materialist, they might be able to bribe him without buying a burnt duck.

“Me and my companion would like to know something…” Warriors leaned in conspiratorially and the bartender stepped back. A hint of disgust crossed his face. The hero must have noticed it but he continued nevertheless. “Of course, good penny for good info--”

“Out,” he said in a monotone voice, but his eyes indicated that he didn’t want to see them under his roof. Warriors' face looked carved out of stone. Not a single muscle twitched. This was not the answer he had expected. Neither had Sky. “If you don't buy anything then get out.”

“My friend didn't want to offend anyone,” Sky stepped closer trying to smooth things over. Even if they come out with nothing, it would be better to be on good terms with the locals. “We just wanted to ask--”

The bartender sized him up. It was enough to make Sky forget the voice in his throat. He took a step back, then another. Eyes cold and contemptuous. For a moment he felt like he was back at the camp and Time was looking at him appraisingly. He didn't say anything. He didn’t have to. Sky knew what he was thinking--

_No, not now--_

“Boy, are you deaf or handicapped?” The bartender crossed his arms and straightened up. A shiver went through him. Oh, Hylia... he was almost as tall as Time-- “I told you to get the hell out of here--”

And then he lost it.

“You don't even know what we wanted to ask!” His fingers tightened on the waxed counter. There was desperation all written over his face. He mastered himself at the last moment and added quickly. “Sir.”

The bartender frowned.

At the same moment the door opened. Light came into the tavern and with it a wave of hot air. He looked back. He reached for the sword. A group of residents went inside, and now was standing awkwardly in the doorway. The oldest of them, a brown-eyed man, raised an eyebrow in silent inquiry. Sky just smiled nervously, withdrew his hand and nodded. He turned away, ashamed. He needed to calm down. No, he needed to sleep. No, he--

“I say it one last time, you buy something, or you go out,” When neither of them replied, the man sighed. But it sounded theatrical in a way. He opened the kitchen door and called out in a voice as indifferent as if he didn't care about getting rid of both heroes. “Chyrlie, come here for a moment”

After a while a tall and muscular dark-haired man appeared on the threshold. He resembled him of Groose, but three times as large. He had olive skin and light blue robes. A cook or a kitchen assistant.

At first, Sky was terrified but when he thought about it... he and Warriors would’ve had no problem defeating him. The room was cramped and he was huge. Sky wasn't even sure he would be able to fully straighten up without hitting the ceiling.

Apparently Warriors didn't think so.

“Okay, you won,” Warriors narrowed his eyes in a predator way and raised his hands up. “We'll order something.” Sky elbowed him on the side, when he didn’t put his hands down.

For the first time since they had come here, the bartender's eyes were fully open. It wasn't the answer he expected. He probably assumed from the very beginning that they wouldn’t buy anything. Sky wondered himself why Warriors wanted to stay here. But for now he decided to remain silent. Warriors wasn’t stupid. He probably had a plan.

“Take a table,” he said in a tone of resentment and looked over his shoulder. He adjusted the scarf that slipped over his left shoulder.

Sky didn't question his command. In fact, he didn't even notice when he sat down at an empty table in the small hall. He stared at the evenly cut wood. He wondered why Warriors didn't want him there. He winced slightly. The answer wasn’t particularly sophisticated and complicated. Sky snapped. If he did it again, no doubt this _Chyrlie_ would have kicked them out of the tavern. His fingers tightened around the edge of the seat. He quickly pulled his hands back when he touched something sticky. He sighed and rested his head on the table top. It wasn't good at all. He needed to have more control over what he was doing. Otherwise, soon not only Warriors but everyone will look at him with pity. Or worse. With distrust. That is, assuming he won't get better. Come to that, why did he immediately assume that? Maybe today will be better...There’s always a chance... If he…

“Why the long face?”

If he maintains a positive attitude...

Exactly! If he immediately assumes that he will fail, it will happen!

Zelda used to say that. He smiled. If she saw him now...

“Sky?”

She wouldn't let him think that way. She always knew how to motivate others.

Sky jumped. Something clicked in front of his eyes.

“Hey, hey, it's just me, take it easy” Warriors sat down across from him.

“Sorry, I was just thinking--”

“Yeah, yeah, I know,” He said, but didn't even look at him. Somehow it made Sky feel even worse. He began to squeeze the fabric of his tunic. Warriors looked around the hall. Sky's eyes narrowed in concentration. What was he looking for?

“...Let's change the table.”

“Why? What's wrong with this one?” He looked at Warriors. Was that part of his plan?

“Bad strategic position” He muttered. Now Sky began to look around. Hmmm actually, it wasn’t the best place to sit. It would be easy to approach them and the escape would be difficult. He frowned. How could he not notice it? With such weak instincts, Ghirahim would surely--

_Don’t think about it--_

“Let's take that one.” Warriors pointed to a table at the back of the hall. From here they would be able to see all possible entrances.

“So... what do you wanna do?” He asked as he sat down in the chair.

Warriors propped his head up with his hand. “Nothing at all” His eyes glimmered with a dangerous glow. Sky didn't believe him for a moment.

“If it's anything risky, I need to know--”

Warriors gave him a brief bored look.

“It's not risky. I just want to check something,” He crossed one leg over the other, looking for some reason not at Sky but behind him. “But you have to promise me something. When it comes down to it, do as I tell you and don't ask any questions. Don't hesitate for a brief moment. Can you do this for me? Can I trust you?”

Sky blinked in confusion. He leaned over the table so that no one could hear him. Uncertainty danced across his face. “Wars, we should better get back to the rest. We won’t find any--”

“ _Can_ I trust you, Sky?” His face was unreadable. Voice harsh and low.

Sky looked at him uncomprehendingly.

“Of course you can. I would never betray you. You're like a brother to me. You know that.” He said softly but sure of his words.

He fell silent for a moment when he heard the clash of metal against metal. Someone was approaching them.

Warriors quickly leaned in too. He cupped Sky's head in his hands and pressed their foreheads against each other. “Be quiet.” he said, looking him straight in the eye. After a moment he released him, leaving Sky confused.

After a while the waitress in a colorful dress came out from behind him. It was bracelets that made the noise. She set a large mug of maroon beer on the table. She flapped her long lashes. There was a blue line painted on her upper eyelid that curled around the corner of her eye. It added charm to her in a way. She smiled kindly.

“Here you are! Fine bear for fine gentleman…” She looked at Sky and raised an eyebrow. “Gentlemen?” She looked down at the one mug of beer in her hand, then looked at Sky again. She blushed in rouge. “Oh, I’m sorry... I think there has been a mistake, I'll go to the bar and be right back in a moment with another mug.”

Warriors stopped her before she left.

“No mistake has been made, m'lady.” The girl turned and the flowers on her skirt smeared into a colorful blur. A luscious blush poured over her face once again. Probably no one else had called her that before... For some reason that thought made Sky feel sad. “This one here is a thousand years too young to even drink grandma's tincture.” Sky flinched slightly as he saw Warriors was pointing at him. He frowned. What was he talking about? The other hero grinned at her widely, ignoring Sky completely. “You see, miss, my nephew and I are on a journey. His poor mother, rest her soul, asked me before her death to take care of him because,” Warriors lowered his eyes and bit his lower lip. “You know, miss, not everyone has equal opportunities in this world. My nephew-- Sky-- he” his voice cracked, his fingers tightened on the cloth of the scarf and he looked Sky straight in the eye. “He can't talk.”

He...

He what?

Why did he say it? Why was he deceiving this poor girl?

This...

This is what he was talking about before, isn’t it?

Sky gritted his teeth. Why did he have to test him like that?

Nevertheless, Sky played with him. If there's one trait Sky definitely had, it was loyalty. He won't betray him even if he's a poor actor.

Sky lowered his head so that his hair covered his face. He curled up to look smaller. Not a well-acted sadness but the best Sky could.

The girl grabbed her hand, “Oh my-- I'm so sorry--” Her green eyes narrowed.

Warriors smiled reassuringly at her. “But don’t get me wrong I didn't want to get you upset here. Miss, can I ask you a few questions?”

The girl nodded, still staring at Sky. Her face was filled with sadness. “Please call me Mirima. And yes, of course, I'll do my best to help you.”

She was... She was really determined. Sky heard it in her voice. He looked at her uncertainly from behind the brown tufts. Her eyes genuinely burned with green fire. He felt a little guilty for deceiving her. She seemed like a nice and helpful person. She didn't deserve to be taken advantage of her kindness…

“As I said, my nephew and I are traveling and today we had the opportunity to stay in this lovely city!” Warriors leaned nonchalantly against the chair. He gave her a broad smile.

The girl, Mirima, chuckled. She waved her hand dismissively. “It's very kind of you, sir, but Shetring is just a town.”

“But how beautiful! Isn't it, Sky?” Sky almost jumped when he said his name. Instead, he nodded and grinned a little. Warriors took a sip of his beer. His eyes strayed across the table. The corners of his mouth fell down. _What is--_ “The problem is, we don't know where to stop. We don't know the terrain very well and we've already got lost a few times.” Sky wanted to roll his eyes, but continued to smile instead. He has been fooled.

The waitress nodded thoughtfully, and then her face lit up. She went to the next table and took the chair from it to place it beside them and sat down. She smiled conspiratorially and Warriors did the same. She didn't stop herself and burst out laughing.

“Well, as far as I know, there are three taverns here. ‘At Jarosh's’ is the best, but also the most expensive” she leaned over the table. “You will not run out of anything there. Beds of good quality, colorful rooms, aaand modern lighting! In addition, the best chefs work there, including a dear friend of mine! Her baked fish are incredible. Just incredible!” She blushed and looked to the side as she lost her composure. Sky smiled at her as if he was trying to tell her she could say whatever she wanted and didn't have to hold back. He didn't know if that was how she perceived it but she returned the gesture.

“The second one is the Inn ‘Under a Maple Leaf’.” She waved her hand and grimaced. “It's not like there's a maple tree next to it or something like that. It's just that the owner likes to brag about it that when she was young she traveled south. The only maple you will find there are three dried leaves pinned over the door. But the living conditions are quite good.”

“The last I've heard of is ‘Apple Wine Inn’,” when Warriors raised an eyebrow, Mirima chuckled. “Everyone who comes here is asking if we make apple wine. The answer is simple. No. We don't make apple wine. I have no idea how that would even work! All fermentation and everything-- I have no idea why old Donni named her inn like that. Really! From what I’ve heard it is a very affordable place. Many travelers decide to stay there, because the price is not that high. The beds may not be the most comfortable and the food isn’t the tastiest, but they really care about neatness. You won’t find a rat in the closet there,” She leaned in even more and whispered. “Old Donni is hipped on cleaning.”

Warriors laughed loudly. How could he pretend so well and act so artificially at the same time? “Then we'll probably visit old Donni today, hmm?”

Sky wanted to answer him, but he bit his tongue just in time. He shrugged. As a reward, Warriors kicked him in the knee under the table. He didn't make the slightest noise. He did not make the slightest--

“Oh, you don't have to frown like that, I'll get to it in a moment.”

He’ll get to _what_ exactly?

Mirima turned her green eyes on him. She blinked in confusion. “What is it?”

“You see, Mirima, Sky is very fascinated by tradition and history. Every time we are in a new place he asks me if we can stay a little longer so he can learn as much as possible--”

“Sorry to cut in, sir, but what do you mean by ‘ask’?” Her eyebrows were drawn down. _Oh shit-- oh--_ “You said that--”

“Sky is mute but he can write,” he waved his hand dismissively.

The girl didn’t look entirely convinced.

“Coming back... is there anything of interest here?”

The girl smiled. Sky decided he liked her positive outlook on the world and people. He could learn a lot from her…

"Of course there is! We, the people of Shetring, value the traditions and culture of our ancestors! If that interests you, then you should definitely go to the temple of the venerable Nivaaldir in the north part of the town. I assure you, this is the most beautiful temple you have ever seen in your life!” The girl's enthusiasm began to infect him. He began to smile on his own. “Besides, we have a library. It's in the east. If you want to know something, you won't find a better place! But you have to be vigilant,” she whispered. “A married couple taking care of this place isn’t too... talkative. Hmmm, is there anything else?” She thought. She really wanted to help them... They shouldn't be doing this. They shouldn't-- “You can also visit the workshops... How long are you planning to stay here? In Shetring, naturally.”

Warriors pondered. He looked up at the ceiling. Garlic hung over his head. Not very helpful for telling imaginary stories but it seemed to somehow inspire him.

“Probably three or four days.” He said after a while. “Then we must go. We aren’t allowed to get used to one place. Religion forbids us.”

Was that... was that an allusion to Hylia? No... he must have been mistaken. He felt sore pain in his chest.

It's just a made up story. He doesn't think so. He--

“Oh, that's harsh but... I think I understand.” Mirima smiled reassuringly. “It's a pity, though. The festival starts in a week and a half…”

Warriors looked at her with wide eyes. Probably the only reaction he didn't fake. He must have found something he was looking for...

“What festival?” He asked innocently.

"Oh, this is a festival that takes place every year here! We celebrate another successful year. All the inhabitants of the surrounding villages come to the town then! There are so many stalls, food and outdoor games that you can’t possibly count them! Great fun, especially for the younger ones. And this is a wonderful time if you want to quickly earn some cash. At festival, there is a demand for almost everything! It's a real shame you won't stay…”

“Well, there's nothing we can do about that,” Warriors shrugged slightly. “We can't stay that long.”

“Mirima!” Another waitress walked over to their table. She clutched the white cloth in her hand. Her hair, like the girl’s, was pinned up and intertwined with a ribbon. The lower eyelids were underlined with a green line. Her face showed clear concern. She leaned over her ear and began to whisper something, while covering her mouth. Sky couldn't hear anything. He didn’t like when the older woman's eyes stopped on him. He smiled sheepishly, and the woman raised an eyebrow.

“Oh, Igness, there’s nothing to worry about.” Mirima squeezed her shoulder reassuringly and smiled warmly. “I'll be back to work in a few minutes, I promise. Will you cover me for a few more minutes? Pretty pleeeease…?”

The woman seemed to calm down. She sighed heavily. “Fine, but not too long, okay?”

Mirima nodded vigorously. The woman gave her one last worried look and walked away to another table.

The girl turned to them. “Igness isn’t a big fan of our employer.” She whispered.

“I wonder why...” Warriors muttered.

Mirima didn't seem to hear him, and if she did, she preferred to not argue. She smiled heartily. “It was a big pleasure of mine to talk with you, but if that's all, then--” she began to get up from the chair.

“Actually, I have one more question, Mirima,” His tone was light and playful. The girl sat down and looked at him expectantly. Joyful sparkles glittered in her eyes. “Has anything strange happened here recently? I mean, not necessarily here but--”

“I'm afraid I don't understand,” the girl laughed. 

“...Right,” Warriors' eyes narrowed. “I’m talking about something strange, disturbing. Something that you might find unusual, unsetting, something you couldn't comprehend--”

Mirima got up. Her face smiling, just like when she spoke about the festival and the library. Her fingers, on the other hand, were clenched on the table top. They were white.

“My apologies. I have to get back to work.” 

Slowly, she pulled the chair down behind her. She was about to leave when Warriors grabbed her wrist. He pinned her entire forearm to the table. The mug of maroon beer quivered. Sky held his breath.

“My apologies, but somehow I don't believe any of your words.” He spoke slowly and calmly as the girl tried to break away. The smile didn’t leave her face. Only the eyes showed that she was trapped. They were dilated and wild.

Several people turned to look at them. They threw sneaky glances, but nobody did anything. Sky didn't do anything either. He just sat quietly. He gritted his teeth. He did it for the greater good. He knew it. And yet--

“You know something. Don't even deny it. I know you do.” His tone remained the same, but his face visibly darkened. “I've met too many liars in my life to be fooled by someone like _you_. You know perfectly well what's going on here, don't you? Now speak.” Mirima said nothing. She pursed her lips tightly. Warriors frowned. After a while, his face became unreadable. Like a blank piece of paper. “But you can't, can you? Someone forbade you.” Mirima didn't flinch. “Yeah... who was that?” He tightened the grip. The girl screamed through clenched teeth. His knuckles were white. The waitress's fingers - blue. “Tell me now and maybe I will consider--”

The blood drained from his face. He felt sick. Warriors continued saying something, but--

“Warriors, stop it! You're hurting her!” He screamed. Mirima looked at him with wide eyes. She looked... betrayed? Why was she-- Sky was helping her! Didn’t she see that?!

Warriors looked at him. His eyes were wide and cold. They seemed to be devoid of an iris. For a brief moment his grip loosened. It was enough. The waitress tore her arm out and ran to the bar leaving them alone.

“What the hell was that?!” Warriors stared at him uncomprehendingly. He shrugged. Sky shot him a glowering look.

He ran to the bar, leaving him behind. He had to find Mirima. He had to find her and explain everything. He'll tell her Warriors didn't mean anything by it. That he didn't want to do anything like that. He'll tell her-- He'll tell her it was a joke! Exactly! They were all just jokes! It wasn't for real!

The girl was standing behind the bar with this woman's, Igness, arm around her form. The bartender was nowhere to be found. He probably went to the kitchen. Good. Very good. He walked over to the bar and smiled.

“Mirima, I would like to apologize so much to you, Warriors he--”

“Get out--” the smile fell from his face. Why was she looking at him like that? He didn't understand. After all, he did nothing wrong. It was Warriors, it was all because of him--

“Listen, I--” he tried again.

“Leave me alone!” She cried and pressed further the older woman's arm. Sky opened his mouth again to speak. “Now you are deaf or something?! Get out!” Tears streamed down her still smiling face. Her makeup began to melt. Only the blue line on the upper eyelid remained intact.

Sky didn't move. He froze. He wasn't even sure if he was still breathing.

“You have not heard?” His gaze shifted to the other voice, more stern. It was the woman standing next to Mirima. Green shadow under the eyelids. Necklaces hanging on her neck. Peacock eye medallion... He tilted his head to the side. Who was she? The realization hit him hard. Igness. Why was she talking to him? He was talking to Mirima. “Get out of here!” He looked again at Mirima's tearful face. A sudden wave of guilt overtook him. Yes. He probably-- He probably should get out. Yes, that was the most optimal solution. 

He took a step back. Then another. The woman was still staring at him.

_Please stop_

“Hey! Watch out!” He ran into someone? His hair was wet. He reached for it with his hand. And sticky.

Someone put an arm around him. It was warm. He has been turned back. He was walking towards the door. As he passed the threshold, he heard a high-pitched scream.

“And that I never see you here again!”

He was walking along the street. People who passed him looked at him strangely.

What just happened? He looked around. But he was pressed closer. Ah, yeah. Someone was still holding him. He looked up.

The realization hit him even harder.

He pushed Warriors away from him. The hero grabbed him by the sailcloth. They both landed on the ground.

Candies from the bag on his belt scattered across the street.

**━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━**

There were no swords here. Four searched the entire shop and still, he found nothing.

‘Maybe... Maybe he keeps them in his room?’

'Don’t be stupid! Who keeps swords in their room if they have a workshop?!’

‘Well…’

‘Don't even start, Vio!’

Four slowly opened the door. It creaked. He turned around, holding his breath. The smith was still busy talking to Time. Good. He opened the door a little wider and slipped inside.

‘I don't think this is something a hero should do…’

‘Are you trying to say you're not interested? Not even the slightest?’

‘That's not what I meant--’

‘So?’

He closed the door quietly. This time it made no sound. He looked around. The room was small and didn't have much furniture. It wasn't very well equipped at all.

‘Okay, let's start with the wardrobe’

Instead, he walked over to the bed. It was long and had an ornate frame. He ran a finger over it. Interesting... Usually the craftsmen preferred simplicity. He lay down on the stone floor. It was warm from the sun shining through the window. He pushed the covers aside and strained his eyes.

‘Hey guys, I know it was my idea but maybe we shouldn’t be doing it? I'm getting nervous…’

‘It was your idea’

‘Yes, I-I know, that's what I was sayi--’

There was nothing there. Only boxes and fragments of yellowed newspapers. He got up. He brushed dust and dirt off his hands. The boxes were too small to hide the sword. Maybe someone could force a small dagger there, but... daggers weren’t his cup of tea. Daggers were the weapons of thugs and bandits. Four was neither one nor the other.

He pushed the covers off the bed. Regular mattress lined with straw.

‘What did you expect?’

‘...you don't have to be so mean, Blue’

He put the covers back in place. He smoothed the material.

‘We can't leave any traces behind’

‘You're being paranoid, Vio’

‘...you’ll thank me later’

He looked around.

‘Wardrobe--’

He walked over to the desk. There was a pile of papers there. He looked through them. He found no weapon designs. Only horseshoes, ornaments and strange looking saddles. Their proportions were disturbed. Interesting. The following pages showed preliminary drawings of agricultural tools.

Maybe this blacksmith didn't specialize in swords.

‘Are we going already? Please, I'm so scared…’

‘Stop smearing. I’m getting tired of your--!’

Only a wardrobe, a chest of drawers and a stove in the corner remained. He had been sitting here way too long. He must hurry. He sighed. And that would be all about his independence. He walked over to the closet.

It was tall, but didn’t reach the ceiling. Flower elements were cut into the old wood. Quite a fancy thing. Though Four preferred the flowers to be painted.

At its top were decorations made of iron. A candlestick and several figurines. Four didn’t know what they might represent.

‘Are we-- are we going to open it?’

He pulled the handle. He grimaced. Why didn't it open? There was no keyhole in the door.

‘It must have slammed’

He tugged harder. The door opened. And it started getting closer to him. The victorious smile faded from his face. The wardrobe was falling right on him! He held it down at the last moment. He gritted his teeth tighter. It was heavy. Maybe there were actually hidden swords?

There was a ping of metal, then a second and third.

‘Wh-what was that?’

His eyes widened. Figurines.

He looked up at the edge of the wardrobe. He has to set it up as soon as possible. His muscles stung when he used all his strength. He made it.

Something dark flew past his face. The clank of metal on the stone floor was loud and shrill. His ears rang. _Damnit._

‘Catch this!’

‘Watch out!’

He catched falling objects. But it was too late. He could hear his heart racing. Heard someone approach. _Damnit, damnit, damnit--_

‘Someone will come in!’

‘Get out through the window!’

‘Hide the evidence!’

It was loud, too loud. His hands tightened around his ears. His head was about to explode.

‘He's already at the door!’

‘What are we going to do now?!’

‘Snap out if it!’

‘Move!’

He grabbed the figurines from the floor and jumped into the wardrobe at the last moment. There were no swords here, only blacksmith's clothes and aprons. The door creaked. Loud footsteps struck them. His fingers tightened on the objects.

“These horseshoes look completely different. What animal are you shoeing them to?”

Time.

Four held his breath. The voices in his head fell silent. He only heard his heartbeat now.

The door slammed. He didn't know how long he was sitting there. He put the items at the bottom of the wardrobe. He slowly opened the door. There was no one in the room. He swallowed hard. He carefully left the wardrobe.

‘...close the door’

He left it ajar. He didn’t dare to close it completely.

He needed to calm down.

‘Remember! Take deep breaths!’

No. Not yet. He had to get out of here first.

But which way?

The door wasn’t longer an option so--

‘Window, we have to go out through the window’

He clenched his hands into fists. It was a bit high, but if he climbed onto the desk... he might be able to make it.

'We need to hurry'

He climbed onto the desk. He skipped the papers and went to the window. He opened it as noiselessly as he could. It opened without much problem. He was immediately greeted by a wave of heat. He looked down. It wasn't high. There were a few people in the street.

‘They can't know we've been here’

Four pulled the hood over his head. He jumped. When he landed, a merchant in an ornate shirt looked at him strangely. _But he couldn't see his face._ That's all that mattered.

‘Guys, I feel a little bad about this situation--’

He ran down the alley, trying not to bump into anyone. Although with his small size, it was rather unlikely. He turned right. He was in front of the entrance to the workshop. The door was ajar. He reached out to knock on the doorframe, but drew it back at the same moment. He hid behind the wall. He took off his hood. It was better not to show himself to the blacksmith now. He had seemed to ignore him since the very moment they came here. Time had his full attention. Four had none. He rolled his eyes. He probably did it because he considered him a child.

‘I hate it when they do that’

The other voices agreed.

Perhaps the blacksmith forgot he was even here. It was better to wait for Time to come out. He preferred the blacksmith not to conclude that it was he the one who was poking around in his room.

He leaned against the wall. It was warm from the sun. He moved even closer. Four liked warmth. He slowly sat down, still leaning against the wall. He enjoyed this town so far. And it wasn't just about the weather.

People looked at them kindly here. They have visited several towns in the last few months. Most of the inhabitants were distanced. They took them for impostors impersonating a legendary hero or traveling robbers.

But here? People didn't even seem to know about triforce. In a way, it was a relief. He preferred towns to forests. He liked to move around built-up areas. Discover alleys and escape routes that he could use later in the event of an accident. And more importantly - towns had that community atmosphere. At every corner, someone was talking or laughing. Four wasn’t a very talkative person per se, but he liked to listen to others. The problem was, listening to the same people over and over again was pretty un--

‘What is the name of this city again?’

‘It was Shretrik or something--’

‘It's Shetring, Time has talked about it a few times already, it wouldn't hurt if listened for once what other people are saying’

‘Oh Vio, that's why we got you here’

‘Oh that's soooo sweet!’

‘No, it's not!’

He ignored the conversation. He rested his head against the wall. He closed his eyes for a moment. It felt so good to be finally warm. He missed it. He could even fall asleep here. He smiled slightly.

‘We can't fall asleep in the middle of the fucking street!’

‘...you're the only one complaining’

He grimaced. He lowers his guard again. Time would never do that-- Not that Time was somehow his authority. He opened his eyes only to meet the others, brown ones. He blinked in surprise. Some kid was looking at him from the corner of the street. He watched him with undisguised surprise. He frowned. What was he after? Had he never seen a hero with a sword before?

‘Maybe he's our fan?’

‘I don’t think so’

‘And why is that?’

‘He’s looking at us with disgust. Correct me if I'm wrong, but the hero should be looked at with adoration and admiration’

Four pressed his lips together into a thin line. He looked straight at the kid, and yet he didn't even jump when he was caught staring. _What's wrong with him?_

‘Hey… since when we entered the town-- did any of you see any vagrants or homeless?’

‘Can't say I did’

‘And why does it matter--'

No. He narrowed his eyes. Vio was right. He didn't see anyone like that. All people he passed by were dressed in well-tailored and well-chosen outfits. Every corner was clean and tidy. He saw no signs of poverty here.

A thought flashed through his mind. He grimaced in disgust.

Nevertheless, he should get rid of him. He didn't need an extra audience. He took a deep breath. He made the most absurd face he could. He waved his hand at him.

As he thought it worked. The boy jumped up and turned pale. He turned and ran away.

He sighed. Well at least he had one less problem now. 

‘...we could have solved it another way’

‘Get a grip Vio, pride isn’t everything’

He wondered how long he would have to wait. He pressed his ear against the wall. He heard the rumbling echo of the blacksmith's voice, but couldn't tell what he was talking about. Time was saying something too.

What was taking him so long? There were no weapons and Time was here only because of him. Did he suddenly want to become a farmer or what?

‘I'm sure he'll be out soon!’

‘In a minute!’

‘Just a moment more--’

‘For Hylia’s sake, will you shut up?!’

‘Blue stop tormenting Red’

Four pressed his fingers to his ears. In fact, he didn't know why he did it. As before, _as always_ , it didn't help much.

Supposedly, having voices in your head could have its advantages. He noticed more details, he could get the opinions of others, he never felt lonely - and things like that, but most of the time it was just irritating.

They kept shouting at each other, whining or screaming or urging something. And Four-- Four was some weird mix of it all.

Sometimes he wondered how he kept his peace of mind when his thoughts were endless arguments and relentless screams. 

...He guessed he's just got used to it. He vaguely remembered the days before he was--

Someone ruffled his hair. He jerked his head up immediately. Time.

‘Fucking finally--’

‘High time’

Four gave him a long look. The leader withdrew his hand.

“Let's go,” He said briefly.

Four got up and ran to his side. When they were far enough from the forge, Time leaned toward him.

“Next time, don't sneak into people's bedrooms, or do it more discreetly,” He sneaked a glance at him. Four used all his willpower to keep his head on. He knew better than to do this. He knew it from the start that this was a stupid idea. Time straightened up. “But generally don't. People don't like it very much.” The corners of his mouth curled up.

Four looked at him, eyes wide.

‘Now I wonder what that means’

Time winked at him.

Four rolled his eyes.

Time's eye narrowed; he put his hand on his shoulder. He dragged him to the side of the street.

‘What’s going on?’

“What is it--?”

“What happened to you? Did you strike something? Did you hit yourself?” Time knelt down and gripped Four by the chin. He turned his head slowly to the left. Four didn’t protest. The other hero brushed back the strands of hair that fell on his temple. He ran a finger slowly over the skin near his ear. He did it so gentle that Four barely felt it.

Time’s eyebrow shuddered slightly, almost imperceptibly. If it wasn’t for Vio, he probably wouldn't have noticed.

‘What does he mean?’

‘He's acting weird!’

‘He knows!’

‘Stand back!’

‘Jump back!’

‘He knows’

‘In four! We'll knock him down in four--’

“You have blood on your face, Four.” all thoughts fell silent.

He... He what? Blood?

What blood?

“But I can't see the wound,” Time said slowly. He turned his face to the right, scanning it with one eye. “There's nothing here either.” He let go of his face and Four stepped back slightly. His eye was fixed on his face. The man was silent for a moment.

“...It's not your blood, is it?” He said slowly. It sounded more like a statement than a question.

Four looked at him uncomprehendingly. What was he talking about? Where do these assumptions come from? He reached a lead heavy hand to his cheek. In fact, there was something on his face. If it was blood, it was dry. He felt it crumble under his fingers. His eyes narrowed. How--

Time pulled his hands toward him. He pulled each of the fingers back in turn. Four didn't even try to pretend he wasn't surprised. In several places on his fingers were pale pink lines from which red liquid was oozing. When did it--

‘Wh-when did it happen? I can't-I can't-- I-I I can't remember--’

Four looked at the other hand. It was in a similar condition.

‘But why didn't we feel anything?! It should hurt like--’

‘Maybe, maybe we're already d-d-d-de- _dead_?’

Four almost rolled his eyes. Even to him, it sounded pretty silly.

‘...It had to be adrenaline’

“Adrenaline…” He whispered.

‘What do you mean?’

A quick thought crossed his mind.

“Candlestick and figurines…” he said to himself. “I must’ve squeezed them too hard…”

Time snapped him out of thoughts. He poured water on both of his hands. Four let out a muffled scream. Good thing they weren't on the main street.

The water removed the red from his hands. Now the cuts were more visible.

“It's not much,” Time admitted closing the water bag and pulling a gray piece of cloth. “But there is nothing else I can offer you right now. You'll have to speak with Hyrule or Legend to get it dressed. Here,” he laid the curled piece of cloth into a ball on his left hand. “It'd be best if you squeeze it with both hands to stop the bleeding a bit.”

Four nodded and Time stepped back and turned.

“We better go,” Time moved. Four rushed over to him, still clutching the fabric. “I asked the blacksmith about places to stop over. I know where we are going to stay.”

‘So that took him so much--’

“I don't know how long the shopping will take for Legend and Hyrule, so it would be good to at least wash your wounds with something decent. But it would be better to wait with bandaging for someone who knows how to do it properly.”

Right. Time was a great commander and fighter, but he made a terrible medic. Once he misjudged Wild's wound, and the poor champion had to struggle with a fever for several days. From then on, health matters were left to specialists.

As for Four...

He couldn't get bandages right with hands like that. They would have absorbed blood before he had worn them properly.

‘Guys... we should do something about it. It's still pouring…’

Four gripped the offered material tighter. It was slowly changing from warm gray to dirty red. May Hyrule and Legend not stay at the stands for too long.

  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *inhale* wARRIORS WHY ARE YOU LIKE THAT


	4. The fire's out but still it burns

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The thing with Lu-linktober is that I'd LOVE to take part in it, but I have like ZERO time for anything recently. School sucks. All the time I'm just feeling dumb and not learning anything. Can't wait to finally have some free time.

Wind closed the door slowly. This room smelled of animosity. If he was being honest… he wasn't entirely sure who was at fault. He jumped down the wooden stairs, counting each step carefully. _But surely someone was._

_One, two!_ These stairs were in surprisingly good condition, he could almost see his reflection in it! Someone must have waxed it. Or whatever it was you did to make them shine. There were no bumps, resin, or dirt that were part and parcel of life on the ship. It was extremely clean here. He stretched his arms out to his sides and continued jumping. Grandma's place was also always clean. He guessed it was just old people's thing. _I wonder if Time will end up like this one day,_ he thought.

_Three, four, five!_ There was no fault without the wrongdoers. He frowned and stood on one leg. He grabbed the railing beside him and, still on one leg, leaned out behind it. There were a few people downstairs, but no one was standing by the bar except the old gray-haired bartender. He smiled. He'll run to her in a moment - but first the stairs. Four wasn't gonna bleed out from a few scrapes on his fingers now was he?

_Six, seven, eight!_

But who could it be? Warriors?

_Nine, ten!_

No.

_Eleven!_

Warriors would never do anything appalling. He was a captain and a knight! The very best one! He was wearing armor and a blue scarf! He shook his head. No, there's no way it was his fault. Besides, he was the one who looked hurt…

He grew slightly sad. He didn't like when Warriors was sad. And now he clearly was. Or at least when he saw him a few minutes ago. Earlier, when he was trying to cheer him up, he glared at him and growled to go away. But that was okay. Wind knew it was.

Everyone had their own breakdowns. Moments when they couldn't cope. Apparently, such a moment came for the captain.

_Twelve, thirteen!_

But Sky...

He didn't like the way he was acting. Since Wild brought him and Warriors to the inn, he had done nothing. Absolutely nothing! He didn't say hello, he didn't smile or wave his hand. His eyes were fixed on his boots as if the dried-up mud was interesting! When he entered the rented room, the first thing he did was he bashed himself in the corner and wrapped in the sailcloth. As if he thought he was some kind of turtle!

_Fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen!_

Someone should tell him that this wasn’t how problems are solved. The fact that you enclose yourself in your shell won’t make everything beautiful and pretty when you leave it. On the contrary it’ll make everything worse. As a hero, he should know that.

Especially as a hero.

_Eighteen, nineteen, twenty!_

But was this tense atmosphere caused by Sky?

_Twenty one, twenty two!_

He paused for a moment and made a jump, taking three more steps. He landed on bent knees.

_Twenty-five!_

Sure Sky was often annoying but somehow he found it hard to believe that someone with his character had done... Exactly. _What?_

He had a fight with someone? He robbed someone? Killed maybe?

Ever since Wind saw the two heroes walking through the door frame, he couldn't help wondering what happened. By the eyes of his imagination he could see colorful pictures of tavern brawls, a bank robbery and--

And although he knew that neither of these scenarios had happened, he allowed himself to dream.

He straightened up.

Still, if he were to bet whose fault it was probably, he would gamble on Sky. He probably took offense at some stupidity at Warriors and that's it. He always was soft. Unlike Wind.

So twenty-five degrees, huh. He turned to look at the stairs once more. When he did, he hit his nose with something. Instinctively, he jumped back and rubbed the spot; checking for signs of blood. There was nothing but his nose still hurt. Fuck.

“Ah, sorry,” said the stranger.

“It's cool. My fault” Wind replied and smiled slightly, still holding his nose.

He turned and ran to the counter.

He must remember what he came here for. Vodka for Four. Yes, yes, yes. Warriors wasn’t in his best shape right now so Wind should be giving not only a hundred percent but two hundred! No. _Three hundred percent!_ He must finally prove that he is equal to them.

He leaned against the counter and tiptoed to appear taller. He smiled showing his teeth.

The old barmaid continued to wipe the countertop with a crumpled cloth. She didn't pay the slightest attention to him.

“Ykhm!” He grunted. Still no answer.

Wind grimaced. Was she deaf or what?

“Ma’am!”

“I heard you, I heard you. No rush, boy, there’s no fire, ye? Wait a minute.” Her voice was rough and there was a hint of irritation in it.

He bit the side of his cheek lightly. If she was doing it only because she though he's a kid then--

He leaned over the counter and watched what she was doing. The woman persistently tried to get rid of the greasy wine stain on the countertop. With little success anyway. As if out of spite, the stain wouldn't wipe away.

“You can't wipe it with a regular cloth and water, lady, you need detergents,” he said in an expert's tone, leaning even more.

The woman gave him a long look. Wind almost lost his balance.

“Hmpf! And you think what? That I haven't tried?!” She put her hands on her hips. “Who do you think I am, _whippersnapper_?”

Wind felt as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over him.

“Whipp-- _WHIPPERSNAPPER?!_ ” He screamed and slapped his fist on the counter. The bottles inside rang sharp and shrill. Nobody, not even Legend, had ever offended him like that!

Wait. wAIT-- His eyes widened and his nostrils started to widen and narrow. He couldn’t behave like this. He got a mission. Yes, that's right, a mission! It was the first he had gotten in several months. He couldn’t screw it up because of some old hag! The others won’t understand that it was impossible to get along with this gorgon, and will say that it was his fault! More importantly, they'll _never_ trust him with anything else! His test will be damned!

“I need vodka!” He screamed, squeezing his eyes shut.

Fuck, maybe that wasn't the best thing he could say. The woman blinked at him in surprise. There were dark green shadows on her upper and lower lids. It made her eyes more visible and appear larger.

...She looked a bit like a raccoon.

... A made-up and fat raccoon.

“Oi, kid,” she leaned toward him. Even though she was old, she was very tall. She smelled of soap and washing powder. Wind used all his strength not to shrink into himself and run away. He was _better_ than that. _Much better_. He won't give up. “For you?” she snorted. “For you I can only get orange juice!” she laughed loudly and left the cloth behind.

She took the glass from the bar and twisted off the orange bottle. She was deaf to his protests. She started to pour.

“No! You don't understand! It's not for me! It's for my friend--”

“Don't think I'll be fooled! I already know people like you and their _'friends'_ ! You can't fool old Donni that easily! You’ll have to make more effort if you want to!" She scoffed as she closed the bottle. "Ha! And if your _'friend'_ wants to buy alcohol, let him come to me!" _Fuck this is going in the wrong direction--_

“Take it and choof off, kid. At the company's expense, let me lose it!" She pushed the glass towards him.

He immediately pushed it aside. Some juice spilled on the counter. Old Donni's eyes narrowed dangerously. But Wind didn't care.

“I need alcohol to cleanse wounds, not to get drunk!” He cried out in desperation. He can’t fail them. He can’t--

“Wound cleansing?” The woman looked puzzled. She picked up another cloth, this time orange with blue crescents and began to wipe the spilled drink. She had separate cloths for different stains? _Weird..._

“Yes,” he said through gritted teeth. He must remain calm. Just. Calm. Warriors must’ve remained calm while on the battlefield. He took a deep breath.

_And this is his own battlefield._

“I don't know who told you to buy it, kid, but it doesn't make sense,” She shook her head. “You will not disinfect yourself with the sauce. Another thing with spirit…”

“I need vodka,” he repeated once more. Wild was definitely talking about vodka. Nobody will question the words of his comrades. No one. _Never._

The woman crossed her arms. “Ye, and I tell you that it doesn't do anything. Listen, kid, you're gettin’ on my nerves. Let's be clear shall we? _I won't sell you vodka or any other alcohol._ Take the juice and go away. This is my last offer. Don’t test my patience, kid.”

Wind looked down at the glass in disgust. As if it was to blame for everything. He’d like to smash it against the floor.

He looked at the woman again. Her eyebrows were knotted and her face gravy. No. There was no option, she was far too determined. He wouldn’t be able to convince her. Without taking his eyes off her, he reached down to his waist for the pouch. He handed it to the woman.

The barmaid shook it against her ear and then tossed the contents onto her hand. She started counting.

He hadn't noticed it before, but there was a silver or gold ring on each of her fingers. Some of them had even more. And one of them had a blue pebble inside-- no, green-- no, wait--

Her eyebrows were drawn down and if it hadn't been for the eyes, they would’ve probably wandered even further. She looked at him askance.

“Not enough. One rupee is missing”

Wind gritted his teeth. One rupee... One rupee... One--

“Wild said that's enough,” he blurted out without thinking.

Old Donni clicked her tongue. “Ye, for the sauce but spirit is more expensive. People usually don't buy it,” she shrugged, but Wind saw her eyes glow. He thought for a moment. _Shouldn't it work the other way around?_ He gritted his teeth. Even if she deceived him, he still had to agree to her terms.

“It's only one rupee,” He said slowly. “One rupee…” He repeated and looked at her. "I really need this. My friend still has untreated wounds and...!”

“No rupees, no spirit,” she stated quickly.

He felt the blood rush inside his veins. He'll have to come back upstairs with nothing-- sure Wild or Twilight would definitely give him that damn rupee, but it won't change the fact that he _didn't_ fulfil his job. That he failed-- That he--

“I'll pay extra,” Wind’s eyes widened. That voice--

He turned around. In front of him was a man in his late 30's dressed in travel gear. He had a strange hat hanging around his neck, and his hair was... blue?

“Cool frieze,” he blurted out and covered his mouth with hands. _What's going on with him lately?_

The man smirked and then Wind recognized him. His eyes widened. It was the guy he ran into earlier on the stairs.

The barmaid rolled her eyes but held out her hand. The man put a shiny diamond there. The woman bent down and put all the rupees in a drawer.

Immediately after that, she began rummaging through the shelves on the left side.

“One day you will go bankrupt from your charity, you will remember my words someday, Lamallane” she groaned, taking out the colored bottles again and again.

"Girl talk" this man, Lamallane waved his hand dismissively. “You should help others. Ah, anyway, I have a weakness for--”

“Helping people in need?” She burst out laughing. But not cordial, oh no. She openly mocked him.

Good to know she was such a bitch to everyone.

“Call it what you want,” he also laughed. Unmoved.

The barmaid placed a transparent bottle on the counter. Wind picked it up. There was a colorless liquid inside. He turned the object in his fingers. There was no label. No thread. Even the cap was plain black.

He looked suspiciously at the bartender.

“And how do I know this is not just ordinary water?”

The woman laughed and ruffled his hair. He stepped back. “Trust me kid you will feel the difference.”

He frowned. He didn't know what that meant, but he pressed the bottle closer. He nodded. He was about to leave when someone grabbed him by the collar. Lamallane.

“What?” he exclaimed, trying to break free.

“ _'What?'_ is this how you should thank others?" He laughed and released him. He patted him on the shoulder.

The young hero bit the side of his cheek.

"Thanks for that rupee, I really needed it, my friend..." he spoke incoherently. He bit his tongue. He almost gave away insider information for someone he didn't even know. Fortunately, he stopped himself. Otherwise Time would've gotten pissed... If he'd found out, that is.

Wait. His eyes widened. He just realized something. He looked up at the man's face. He took a step back.

“You came to me yourself,” the second step. “You offered to contribute.” third... “I have no intention of returning you anything, much less interest! BYE” he shouted, saluting and before the man could reply, he ran upstairs, jumping every few steps.

**━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━**

“Listen, I'm trying to help, I'm trying to--” he took a deep breath. “I'm trying to understand what has actually happened but your attitude doesn't help me in any way.” Twilight had enough of it, he really did. The whole situation was weird, and for some reason he was the one designated to face it. Well, maybe 'designated' wasn't the best word. Wild asked him to. And who was Twilight to say no to him?

Warriors didn't move. He didn't even blink. He continued to stare at Sky who was still sitting in the corner. Twilight didn't think anything else would make any difference. If Wild hadn't been stealthily peeking at him from behind the half-closed door, he would have given up a long time ago. Especially since Warriors held some grudge for something Twilight didn’t know and didn’t understand. 

_What you don't do for your pupils..._

He scanned the blond man sitting next to him doubtfully. Ever since they entered the town, he hadn't wanted to talk to him. His eyes narrowed. No. He's been doing it since morning. Since he returned to the camp…

"If you’d just tell me what happened... I would really understand if you had an argument" well now he was lying to his face; he had no idea how to argue with someone as peaceful and friendly as Sky. Nevertheless, he continued, trying to keep his tone from revealing his true thoughts. "But you have to talk to me. I can't read tea leaves, I can't read minds or use that terrifying magic like Hyrule," Warriors looked at him strangely. _Damn, that was supposed to be funny!_ The kids on the farm would laugh! Why is he looking at him like that?! _Damnit, damnit, damn--_

"Twilight" he started. Warriors' voice snapped him out of trance. He smiled sheepishly although he had no intention of doing so. Heat spread all over his face. Why did it always have to be at times like this? He had to be red like a ripe tomato. "Thank you and I really appreciate what you are doing," now he will say 'but' and everything he said so far will no longer matter. " _But,_ nothing happened," he added, smiling slightly. "Don't worry about it"

He raised an eyebrow up. It sounded more like an order than a gracious suggestion. Warriors turned away. Maybe if Twilight hadn't spent most of his journey with Midna, it would have made some impression on him. _Maybe._

He sighed defeated and got up from the hardwood floor. Apparently he would have to disappoint Wild. It wasn't the first time but it always made him feel terrible. He was an adult, shouldn’t he be more responsible and reliable? Even though his first adventure started and ended a few years ago he didn’t feel like he aged a day. He wasn’t smarter or more mature. If anything he felt more and more confused. He wondered how Rusl was doing it. He always seemed to know the right solutions. 

Or maybe he was as clueless as he was? Not that Twilight could tell. He didn’t see the man in years.

Sometimes when he wasn’t plagued by nightmares he dreamt of his family. They were nice dreams. He didn’t remember them but he felt warm on heart. 

More often than not he woke up with tighten throat and shirt sticky from sweat.

He didn't remember exactly when it all started, but as they intensified he often chose to stay awake longer. There was nothing he hated more than the pounding of his own heart in his ears.

He stepped out into the corridor and closed the door.

Besides there was one thing that hunted him recently - Did anyone even know where he was?

Did anyone miss him at all? What if not? Maybe they considered him dead. Perhaps somewhere behind the farm, near the stream, there was a lonely grave with his name carved on it, waiting for his body to return. If so then...

Did… did anyone even come there? Maybe they forgot about him? Life on the farm was fast… Did anyone remember him?

Link, a simple boy who wanted to lead a quiet life among green hills; and not a saviour in a chosen hero tunic who--

"So?"

"So what?" he asked thoughtlessly.

Wild frowned. "So, how it went." Twilight opened his mouth to ask what he meant, and Wild noticed that. "With Warriors" he made an indefinite move with his hand and narrowed his eyes. "Because you talked to him, didn't you? It definitely looked like a conversation..."

Twilight blinked. Ah, this.

"I learned nothing," he sighed heavily. "Warriors doesn't really want to talk with me-- nothing new in general... I thought he would get over whatever he is upset about... I really don't know what I did to him..." He scratched his neck and bowed his head.

Earlier he tried to talk to the captain about it but he dismissed him with a cheeky smile. It was when they entered town. Now the situation seemed even worse.

Wild leaned against the corridor wall, looking up. He exhaled angrily.

"I don’t like it."

"Me as well."

Wild gave him a brief look. He probably wanted to ask him something, but Twilight wasn't sure.

This whole situation was starting to infect him.

"Maybe you should talk to Sky?" He proposed. "He's always been the talkative one and open-minded... And, yesterday you cooked together-- I mean-- you know how he is... He would never hurt anyone, he can't even get angry with someone"

Wild folded his arms.

"No way. I won't go over to him."

Twilight raised an eyebrow at him, if it was bothering him so much, why wouldn't he do anything about it himself?

"So what? You want me to take care of it? Wild..." He hesitated. For a moment he thought about something, but-- No. This couldn’t be it… right? "I hope you know that Sky as well as me and everyone else recognizes you as a full team member, cub"

Wild sucked air through gritted teeth.

Twilight felt the corners of his mouth slowly curl upward. He licked the inside of his teeth. He fucked up again. Sky would be better at it, he thought bitterly, he always knew what the time was for; when to speak, when to comfort; when to be silent. Twilight had never had this ability.

A soft voice in his head told him that Sky would be a better mentor than him.

Stupid to admit, but he didn't even deny it.

Wild shook his head slowly, brow furrowed.

"That's not what I mean. I don't think anyone should be talking to him right now. Not in that state."

He frowned. In that state? The last time he saw him, Sky was sitting in a corner, sailcloth wrapped around him from head to toe like a cocoon of sorts. The only thing that made Twilight sure that no larvae had infested their room was the light brown locks of hair sticking out at the top. Did he look like he was in bad shape? Not really. Well-- Twilight took him quite a long time today that he could spend sleeping, so he was definitely not in his top form, but--

"You're overthinking, aren't you?"

He glanced to the side, angry that someone had caught him doing it, and thankful that someone had pulled him out of it. "Yeah, kind of. Sorry, cub."

Wild scowled at the nickname. He never liked it, but he didn't usually show it openly. He must have been tense himself too. He looked at him sympathetically.

"You weren't there so you don't know, but..." He wrung his hands. "Ughhh Hylia be damned! They looked bad, Twilight. Like _really_ bad."

Twilight walked to the door. He opened it slightly so that he could see the room but not reveal his presence. Sky, Warriors and Four sat in the same seats as before. He sighed with relief. He really didn't want to watch Four jumping around the other two if a fight started. He immediately scolded himself for this way of thinking.

Four wasn’t a kid. He was more than competent to call someone to the scene, and Warriors would never raise a hand against a teammate, neither would Sky.

Four looked up at him from the bloody cloth. His eyes twinkled. Twilight simply nodded and slowly closed the door.

"What do you mean by that?" He asked, turning away.

"...They weren’t saying anything. Warriors did..." He waved his hand in the air. "This thing, whatever it is, that he is doing now? Which in itself is pretty uhh… Unsetting? Disturbing? You know what I mean!"

Twilight nodded slowly.

"But Sky... He looked like... like a wreck"

This got his attention. He looked at him with knotted eyebrows.

"What do you mean by that?" He asked slowly, watching him closely.

Wild exhaled angrily through his mouth.

"What don’t you understand about that sentence?" His fingers tightened on his shoulders. His eyes narrowed. Too much for Twilight's liking.

"I don't know, but describing someone as a 'wreck' isn't very helpful. You don't have to be that snappy right away."

"Sorry" he muttered through teeth and Twilight was almost sure he didn't mean it at all. He brushed a long section of hair back.

"Wild," he hesitated. How would Time say it? "...I realize nobody likes conflicts in the group, but... you shouldn't worry about it so much" and he of all people was saying it? "This situation... This conflict is between Sky and Warriors, and I realize it's hard to process, but you're not part of it and you don't have to feel responsible or obligated in any way. Sky and Warriors are technically adults. and I'm sure they'll settle this dispute, if they have one, in a prudent manner, as befits people of their age. Anyway," he leaned against the railing, which creaked slightly when he did so. "This isn’t the first time a conflict has arisen in our group. Warriors has taken offense at someone many times" and by someone he meant one very specific person. "And somehow it always ended well" he smiled slightly. Wild didn’t smile back. He hardly ever did. The smile fell from his face. He sighed.

"As for Sky... He's got his reserves too. Sometimes you might think someone's perfect, but the truth is people like that don't exist. Sometimes I catch myself on it." He admitted. "So does Sky. He can look and feel like that knight in shining armor who can do anything, has the applause of the people and a beautiful maiden waiting for him at home, but I assure you, he has his weaknesses too. Everyone has them." 

Wild looked at him through half-closed eyes. He pursed his lips into a thin line. Kid might appreciate what he was saying to him once in a while. He sighed heavily.

"My point is Sky may also have a worse time. For example..." He thought. He clicked his tongue. "Remember when you borrowed the Master Sword?"

The teenager nodded as the bright streaks swirled. His eyes seemed to lighten up slightly, as if they had acquired greater sharpness and color.

"Did that Sky who yelled at you remind you of our Sky?"

Wild grimaced.

"No, not really." He leaned his entire body weight against the white wall. He looked up at the ceiling. "Except you know when the Master Sword fell apart, Sky thought I annihilated his friend's soul. Anyone would lose his temper..." He feigned indifference, but Twilight heard him take a quick breath of air. "The thing is, to get that kind of reaction out of him, I had to endanger the life of someone important to him." he paused. "...You know what I'm heading to?"

Twilight nodded reluctantly.

He didn't want to admit it, but he also expected the worst. ...Which didn't mean he could leave Wild like that.

"Wild, we've talked about this before. You can't assume worst-case scenarios right away--"

"It's better to be always prepared for the worst"

Twilight fought the urge to grit his teeth. He loved that kid, but Hylia... When he was stubborn, he became terribly obnoxious. He looked down at the floor.

Often when he looked at Wild, he saw in him Time who was still young and whom he could help, but sometimes... Sometimes he saw himself. And that frightened him the most.

"Wild--" he held out a hand for him as something ran between them. Something small, fast and agile. Dressed in a blue tunic and orange shorts. Wind. He ran into the room and slammed the door behind him.

"Wind is back, we need to dress Four’s hands." And with these words, Wild entered the room.

Twilight hung his head. He avoided confrontation again. He shook his head. Although this time at least he did it for a good cause. He looked up and straightened. He entered the room.

**━━━━━━━━▲━━━━━━━━**

Apart from the fact that there were more people in the room now, practically nothing had changed. Sky was sitting where he was before, and even though Warriors went out with Time didn’t change the atmosphere. Wild and Twilight gossiped along the wall like street vendors. He rolled his eyes. Did they really fail to consider that the walls in the inn can be thin? Four didn't even bother to eavesdrop, and he could hear everything.

He couldn't quite understand why they were so upset about it all. Sky and Warriors must have fought over something and that's it. Four knew a lot about conflicts, and when it comes to conflicts within the group it was safe to say that he was an expert.

And judging from his experience, any conflict will sooner or later be resolved. However, the issue was how it would be resolved. But at the moment it wasn’t particularly important.

Was Warriors acting weird? Arguably, yes. Except that none of the heroes took into account just how many times Warriors had such humors.

‘Sometimes I wonder if he’s even stable’

‘You can't say things like that, Blue!’

And Sky looking like a wreck? He muffled a hiss as the spirit met open skin. He has been acting as if he wasn’t fully conscious for two days. He grimaced. It hurt terribly. The basin beneath his hands was filled with a clear liquid that was slowly staining red from drops dripping from his fingertips.

"Fuck, how is it _stinnking_..." Legend swore.

'It huuuuurts!'

The grip on his hands tightened.

"Don't you dare fidget." Legend growled. He had a long face, as if someone told him to drink lemon juice with his nose. "If the spirit goes on the floor, I'll make sure you lick it off with your tongue."

'Someone here is in a great mood...'

Four looked at him. He wondered why he was so annoyed. He will _not_ believe that it was just about the lack of sleep. It had to be something more.

Legend noticed him staring. His eyebrow traveled ominously upward. Four's did the same.

"I still can't believe it," Twilight sat on the bed next to him. The old wood creaked under his weight. He leaned forward and hid his face in his hands. "Please, Wild, tell me at least you didn't bathe your wounds with it."

"Well, about that--"

Twilight let out something between a howl and a sound of frustration.

Legend snapped his fingers in front of his face.

"Now focus, press it against the wounds for a few minutes, I'm going to wash my hands from this swine. When I come back I’ll bandage these for you" Four nodded and took the cloth soaked with alcohol from the hero. He did as he was told. To his surprise, it didn't burn half as much as before

'The worst is behind us'

Legend got up from the floor and, hands in front of him, walked to the door. One unpleasant look was enough for Wild to open it for him.

But before he left, Time and Warriors entered the room. The later one with his head bowed. They passed without a word. Although Legend's eyes narrowed at the sight of the other hero, he didn’t say anything. 

Time, like everyone else, had his armor and weapons removed. That is, bypassing Warriors. He was still in full gear. He wasn't sure about Sky. His belongings were nowhere to be seen, and neither was the Master Sword on his back. Maybe he hid it under one of the beds when Four wasn’t looking?

'I don't think so, but it’s difficult to rule out such a possibility'

Warriors collapsed in his corner. Four wouldn’t be surprised if he intended to fall asleep here today.

'It's always a better chance of getting a bed...'

'You're awful!'

Time, on the other hand, walked across the room and sat down against the far wall. His eyes ran over the faces of the other heroes. The whole room grew quieter.

For a moment his gaze lingered on him as if in a silent question. Four nodded affirmatively.

"We'll start discussing when we're at full strength."

Everyone nodded. Everyone except Sky and Warriors. But he didn't think anyone expected anyting else. He wondered what the leader was talking to their favorite captain about...

'I hope everything ends well...'

When Legend returned, Time grunted.

"Let's start with the basics. We only rent this room because we have to limit our spending." Legend who sat next to him rolled his eyes. "But I managed to convince the owner to let us move two beds from the next room. We'll do that later... Which gives us a total of five beds. It isn’t much but better than anything. So I hope no one will do anything to annoy her." Four heard someone tapping a fingernail nervously on the floor. "Besides, we have a neighbor." A neighbor? Now that’s interesting. "And I hope everyone here understands what that means."

Everyone nodded.

This was what everyone expected. The city was drowning with glamor and gold. He would be surprised if they didn't have a neighbor.

Time exhaled through his mouth and closed his left eye for a moment. He brushed his hair back.

"Okay, now that we're over, who wants to start?" He didn't look that intimidating without his golden armor. Well, at least to Four. Although no, he never looked intimidating to him.

Legend raised a hand up to his head.

Time nodded at him.

"Hyrule, take care of Four and I'll do the talking," he tossed the bag to the confused boy.

Hyrule looked as if he wanted to protest but he dutifully did what the traveler asked him to. Four's eyes were on him. The teenager sat on his knees in front of him.

"Let's see," he said quietly, a small smile on his lips.

‘His hands are shaking’

Four looked once at his hands once at his face. "Are you sure you can get it right?"

"Of course, why wouldn't I?" Four wasn’t convinced, but he put the cloth back into the basin and showed both hands on the inside. Hyrule looked at them for a moment, assessing the damage, but finally reached for a bandage from the bag. He started wrapping.

"We should leave this place as soon as possible." 

Four looked at Legend; and not only him, they all seemed to be staring at him. He was sure that even Warriors looked at him for a moment. Hyrule bit his lower lip and hung his head slightly.

"Why?" Wild spoke first. He crossed his arms and leaned one leg against the wall. "Has someone attacked you? Or is this the territory of--"

"Let me finish, will you?" Wild fell silent and pressed himself against the wall. He always took offense quickly. "We walked the whole town with Hyrule, from top to bottom, and we couldn't buy red potions anywhere. I think it's best to leave this place right now."

Four looked at the boy in front of him. He didn't look up.

"Woah, hold on a second!" He said stretching his head up. "Maybe they've just been sold out. There's no reason to--"

"Believe me, there is," Legend snapped and turned to him. "The vendors didn't even know what it was, and they have no counterpart. A city without potions is useless to us. We don't need to stay here any longer."

'He has something on his conscience'

'You mean it's not his usual face?'

'You know what? Red’s right you need some love so you stop-- ’

Time grunted. Four felt as if he were beginning to feel sick. Was it… was it the spirit?

"We cannot do this."

Legend got up. Arms tightened, fists clenched. "Why not?! We--"

Time raised his hand and Legend held back the oncoming blast.

'hmmm maybe he makes an impression on someone'

"I understand your concerns, but we can’t leave now. The sun is about to go down and we don't have a map. We can’t hit the road earlier than after sunrise.”

Legend got his nerves under control and sat down, his legs crossed. But Four saw better. His teeth were clenched. He alternately took off and put the rings on his white fingers.

Four looked at the two-piece window. It was opened so that the last rays of the sun had no problem falling inside on the orange rug, turning it into a juicy and violent red. Surprisingly, it was still warm. That's probably why Four hasn't registered the change of hours since he came here. He wondered if the temperature would hold when they went to bed. Wild and Time once talked about their way through the desert. He wondered if the temperature would drop below zero here too. He looked at the thin blankets rolled up on the beds. _No, it doesn't make sense._

"One is done," said Hyrule. Four looked at his left hand which was actually wrapped. Only here and there were smaller scrapes not covered with a bandage.

He sent an easy smile to Hyrule.

He answered him in the same way except that his left corner trembled.

'We should give him a huuuuuug!'

'No! No hugs!'

Time cleared his throat. "We'll talk more about it at the end." Legend gritted his teeth but nodded steadily. Why did he care so much about it? "Anything else? Hyrule? You want to add something?"

The teenager turned by his left shoulder. "No, not really.” He’s voice was soft. “We bought some bandages and ointments but nobody probably cares about the details..."

"Good. Twilight? Wild? Got what you wanted?"

Twilight nodded. He was surprisingly quiet. He didn't even say a word. The whole situation must overwhelm him much more than he was making known.

'Where did his talkativeness go? Half an hour ago he gave a speech of his life’

'You know what? Screw you! You’re-- you’re _mean_!’

'...Does it bother you now? I can say sorry if it makes you feel better’

'I swear to goddess, it's not Blue who’s the worst, it's you Vio!'

'D-d-don’t f-f-fig-f-f--'

The walls and floor began to ripple. They were approaching him so that he thought he was going to hit them with his head in a moment, but before they did, they moved away again. It was as if he fell into an abyss. This wasn’t real, he knew it. He persistently kept straight and tried to focus on one point.

His dizziness had never been so bad.

"Yeah, we've got everything we need. It wasn't much of a problem." Wild replied.

'Well, I assume it's good that at least he got what he wanted...'

"I'm sure there's a blacksmith who makes weapons somewhere!"

'Yeah, Red's right, we can't just give up'

"Okay, I’m finished. Might be a little tight but... too tight is always better than too loose"

Four looked at both hands. He clenched them into fists and opened them. He did this several times alternately. He will be able to hold a sword if the need arises. He was about to thank Hurule when the other hero said he had to take something and would be back in a moment.

"Together with Four, we went to the blacksmith, but there was nothing interesting there. Mostly agricultural tools and Horsand’s horseshoes.”

"Horse- what?" Wind looked at him in surprise.

'Ah that must have been--'

Time shook his head, smiling. "Later. If there is time, I'll tell you about it later." Wind just grunted something under his breath and collapsed on the bed. Four didn't even roll his eyes. "I also learned where we could find something, but-- it's not an option I would choose..." he continued talking.

Hyrule was beside him again. He was holding a small purse. He pulled out a thin piece of... paper?

"What is this?"

'I've never seen anything like that before'

'It sparkles and is dull at the same time--'

'Can it hurt us? Please say no-- '

"Uhh" Hyrule glanced sideways and ran his tongue over his teeth. "The merchant who sold it to me said they were adhesive bandages? I guess it was adhesive bandage-- now that you asked me about it, I'm not so sure--" he laughed nervously and looked sideways looking for someone; probably Legend, so assumed Four.

'It doesn't make a difference what it's called!'

'I have to agree with Blue, it doesn't really matter--'

'Why are you like that guys? You can see that he’s trying his best! Have more forbearance '

'Please d-d-do-don't fight...'

Four squeezed his eyes shut. Too much-- too much-- too--

"Are you… all right?" Hyrule's eyes were concerned. He put a hand on his shoulder. He squeezed it lightly, as if he was afraid the slightest touch would leave him shattered. He froze for a moment taken from his head.

"Yeah, so what do they do?"

"Oh, yeah, right. They have kind of glue on both sides" glue? "And thanks to this, they don’t fall off and can be placed on a smaller surface-- uhhh it's hard to explain-- just- just give me your hand.

Four hesitantly did so. Hyrule took one 'adhesive bandage' and removed the shiny part from it. Four noticed that there was a white square below it. His eyes narrowed slightly.

'I don't trust it'

'Have more faith, Hyrule is the last person who’d wanted to hurt someone'

Hyrule approached his hand and pressed the strap lightly against one of the wounds on his fingers. To his surprise, it hurt. But only for the moment when the soft material touched the wound itself. Besides, it was fine. He brought a finger to his face. He examined the beige ring carefully.

"Thanks to this, nothing will get into the wound and you will not have to bandage your whole fingers due to a small cut"

"Nice thing are these adhesive bandage"

"I know right?"

"Okay, now maybe information," Legend said irritably. There was silence in the room. Four knew that someone would take up this topic sooner or later. Though he had expected Twilight rather than him. "Because that's what we're here for, isn't it?"

Four's gaze went to the captain sitting against the wall. Warriors didn't even flinch but for some reason Four felt like he was listening carefully to every uttered word.

'Nothing can be excluded'

'You're doing it again...'

Legend got up, brushed the back of his tunic and walked over to him. Rumbling sounds emerged from under his heels. Hyrule sucked in air for a moment.

"Hey, pretty boy, what did you find?" for a moment Four thought he was going to kick him in the side, but he didn't do anything like that. He just crouched; his eyes lit up. "Hey?"

When the captain said nothing, Time stepped into action.

"Warriors there’s no need to hide it, tell them what you told me" Time straightened. Legend looked slightly annoyed but didn't say anything.

'Ha! I was right he would blurt it out! '

'Yeah, like it wasn't obvious from the start'

'You only say that because you lost the bet!'

Warriors grunted under his breath.

_"Warriors"_

"We found nothing," he said dryly. His eyesight distant.

Legend got up and looked at him once again. He waited for the hero to continue. But he didn't.

"That all? No explanation?"

Warriors' facial muscles tightened slightly.

"Give him a break, he had a rough day" 

‘Why is Time protecting him like that?’

‘Maybe he has a reason’

Legend just grunted something under his breath, but obediently sat down in his seat.

There was silence again.

"So..." Wild spoke first. "What are we gonna do now? There’s no potions or information... Are we leaving?"

"Not exactly. I wanted to avoid this but,” Time sighed “We don’t have much choice. We'll have to pay a visit to the mayor of this town."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sky is unavailable at the moment please try again later  
> \-----  
> Fun fact: Vodka isn't the best thing to clean your wounds because it has too little percent to clean anything. It's probably the only thing I learned during holidays ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯  
> \----  
> Dunno when the next chapter is going to show up. School is taking my all time recently and it's hard to find a while to write and even more to translate.
> 
> The chapters would be posted more regularly if they were shorter, buuut I feel like there's almost nothing happening at all. Don't get me wrong I REALLY enjoyed writing this chapter. I love the perspective of Wind and Four but there's almost no action. Just talking.
> 
> Also Twilight is like my fav character but writing him is hella hard. I don't know if I'm just trying too hard or what, but i was rewriting his PoV three times. Never again. 
> 
> I'm going to do his perspective only when necessary.
> 
>   
> \----  
> Thank you for all lovely comments it's really motivating to see people enjoy something I write <3


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